Military to build $65M facility at Hartlen Point to test new warship systems

What do you do when you want to test your new warship's systems, but the ship hasn't been built? You install the systems on land.

The military plans to build a $64-million facility on the shores of HartlenPoint, N.S.The site is a small Halifax-area peninsula already owned by the Department of National Defence.

The new facility will be used to test the combat, navigation and communication systems for the upcoming Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) ships.

The final design of those ships hasnot been confirmed, but theywill be heavier and longer than the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships that have come off the assembly line at the Irving Shipbuilding yard in Halifax.

Funding for the testing site has already beenincluded as part of the multibillion-dollar federal shipbuilding procurement process.

Why not wait until the boats are built?

The new facility will act as a type of simulator for crew members certainly, but mainly for the ship's systems themselves.

"Due to the complexity of the CSC combat systems, these systems must be integrated and commissioned to ensure the systems function correctly before they're installed on the ships," said an emailed statement from the Department of National Defence.

"As there are no existing facilities capable of supporting this type of testing for CSC in Canada, we will deliver a new, land-based testing facility to house, test, and evaluate the combat systems of an operational ship as part of the CSC's rigorous tests and trials program," the statement continued.

Location meets many requirements, military says

Building the test facility at this spot has its benefits, military officials say.

The land is already owned by the military, the site meets security requirementsand there is lots of space available for buildings and equipment.

Hartlen Point also has a unique feature. It "allows 130-degree live transmission of emitters out over the ocean, which is essential for the CSC testing requirements," said an emailed statement from the Department of National Defence.

Part of the testing process will be to assess how newsystems get along with the older ones on current ships. Equally important, it will assess how well the systems will workwith ships belonging to Canada's allies.

Placing the testing centre close to the coast could, in theory, allow Canadian or allied ships to sail past and perform drills to check those new systems.

As for environmental concerns, the government put out a general notice of its plans earlier this year, and solicited feedback from the public.

The government has published a document online seeking contractors to help design the facility. Once the blueprints are drawn up, construction could begin in 2023.