After the creation of the Australian Defence Medal (ADM) was announced, Cogent was engaged to assist the Directorate of Honours and Awards to assist with the procurement of a service provider to manufacture, engrave and dispatch the ADM to eligible personnel. When the creation of this medal was first announced it was intended that this medal be awarded to personnel who had served for six years or more with the ADF, either in the Regular or Reserve Forces. However the eligibility for this medal was subsequently expanded significantly, a situation which was estimated to require the production of up to 1,000,000 ADM over a period of approximately 5 years.