Glenn Copeland: Beneath the ice, Canada's strategic future is taking shape
As Canada prepares for the next generation of its maritime defence capabilities, attention is naturally focused on the ships and submarines that will safeguard the country’s vast waters across three oceans.
Yet an equally important question lies beneath the surface: where will the technologies that power and sustain these vessels be developed, integrated and maintained over the decades ahead?
Canada continues to renew its shipbuilding capacity , but many of the complex systems that form the operational backbone of these vessels remain sourced from abroad.
As geopolitical dynamics become more complex — particularly in the Arctic and the Indo-Pacific — there is growing recognition that enduring maritime capability depends not only on acquisition, but also on sustained domestic capacity. This includes research, engineering talent and industrial integration aligned with the environments in which the Canadian Armed Forces operate.
This presents a constructive opportunity for Canada: future defence programs can serve to meet capability needs and to strengthen a resilient maritime innovation ecosystem that supports long-term national capacity and reinforces the country’s sovereignty.
Canada already possesses many of the essential building blocks: world-class universities, respected research institutions and a rapidly advancing technology sector that has strengths in artificial intelligence, robotics and advanced materials. The next step is to more closely integrate these capabilities into large-scale defence and industrial programs.
There are encouraging examples of this approach.
Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy has demonstrated how major procurement programs contribute to broader industrial development by linking shipyards, suppliers, research institutions and training partners.
In Atlantic Canada, the Ocean Supercluster continues to bring together industry, academia and government to translate research into advanced industrial capability. In southern Ontario, similar models are beginning to take shape within the maritime sector.
Building on this momentum, Hanwha Ocean Co. Ltd. designed a memorandum of understanding with Ontario Shipyards to explore long-term industrial collaboration to support Canada’s future maritime programs. A related letter of intent with Ontario Shipyards and Mohawk College is examining the creation of a shipbuilding, training and research hub embedded directly within shipyard operations.
The concept is practical. By linking technical education with the needs of Canada’s marine defence sector , including advanced manufacturing, digital shipbuilding and quality assurance, these hubs can help strengthen workforce development and industrial capability.
Bringing students, engineers and researchers closer to real-world production environments can accelerate knowledge transfer while supporting the next generation of skilled Canadian talent.
Canada’s Arctic is increasingly recognized as a region of strategic importance from both a security perspective and in terms of environmental stewardship, infrastructure development and scientific understanding.
Operating effectively there requires capabilities tailored to its unique conditions: extreme weather, long distances, limited infrastructure and complex under-ice dynamics. These challenges point to the need for closer alignment between research, engineering and operational application. In this context, Hanwha has proposed the Hanwha Arctic & Defence Innovation Centre (HADIC).
Envisioned as a Canadian-based research and innovation hub, HADIC is designed to connect Arctic naval research, advanced engineering and industrial application within a single collaborative framework. Its focus includes areas such as autonomous systems, advanced sensing, undersea awareness and technologies supporting both crewed and uncrewed platforms operating in Arctic conditions.
By bringing together academia, industry, and operational stakeholders, HADIC aims to help translate research into practical capability, supporting Canada’s ability to operate effectively, safely and responsibly in support of its Arctic sovereignty while contributing to broader technological advancement.
None of this can be achieved, however, without a skilled workforce.
Canada’s marine sector continues to experience strong demand for skilled trades, engineers and technical specialists, particularly as attention increasingly turns to Arctic operations and next-generation systems. Strengthening the connection between education, research and industry is essential to building the talent base.
For a country with the world’s longest coastline and expanding Arctic responsibilities, the path forward is clear.
Ships and submarines will remain the most visible elements of maritime capability. But the systems, expertise and industrial capacity that sustain them play an equally important role in determining long-term resilience.
By aligning procurement with innovation, workforce development and industrial collaboration, Canada has the opportunity to reinforce not only its maritime capability, but also its broader national capacity.
Glenn Copeland is chief executive of Hanwha Defence Canada.