BUSINESS NEWS
21 May 09. DRS Technologies, Inc., announced today that, through a subsidiary, it has entered into an agreement to purchase all of the outstanding stock of Soneticom, Inc. Soneticom, a privately-held business located in West Melbourne, Florida, is a leading provider of precision geolocation systems and communications products. Mark S. Newman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DRS Technologies, stated “I am confident that the addition of Soneticom will not only expand our product portfolio, but will also contribute greatly to our future growth in the intelligence systems business. I look forward to the many opportunities that will result from this transaction.” Tim Reynolds, President and CEO of Soneticom, Inc. added that “The combination of DRS and Soneticom will set new industry benchmarks in precision geolocation and expand the innovative signal solutions provided to our combined customers. We look forward to being part of the DRS team.” Soneticom focuses on solutions for precision geolocation supporting the growing defense, homeland security, and spectrum management markets. The company also brings with it expertise in communications systems, applications development and product engineering. Soneticom’s current customers include both governmental and commercial entities. “The products offered by Soneticom are highly complementary to our core intelligence systems business. They can be employed in communications intelligence (COMINT), electronic warfare (EW) and radio spectrum management applications,” said Richard Danforth, President of the DRS Defense Solutions Group. “Soneticom has a strong lineage of customer relationships, a growing installed base of products, and an established position in growing markets.”
02 Jun 09. FLIR Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: FLIR) announced today that it is experiencing a strong demand around the world for the company’s Star SAFIRE(r) and Talon(r) classes of stabilized, multi-sensor airborne systems. Since the start of 2009, FLIR Systems has received more than 135 electro-optic/infrared system orders for a variety of airborne applications and platforms in the Americas, Asia-Pacific region, Middle East and Europe. During this period the United States government ordered systems for their Air Force, Army, Marine Corps and Navy. In addition, Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, Poland, Qatar, United Arab Emirates (UAE), South Korea and Spain have all ordered the company’s life saving systems. To date, FLIR Systems has delivered in excess of 4,000 systems that have been fitted on more than 100 different types of fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and ships.
“The strong demand for FLIR Systems’ technologically advanced systems throughout the world is a testimony to our sensors’ high performance, reliability, and effectiveness,” said William A. Sundermeier, president of FLIR Government Systems. “With imaging systems in more than 75 countries around the world, our customers truly are our credentials.”
These sensors are to be installed on a wide range of aircraft including, the AgustaWestland AW139, Bombardier Dash 8,Sikorsky S-70, BT-67, Sikorsky HU/HH-60, Northrop-Grumman MQ-8B Firescout, Bell-Textron UH-1N/Y, Lockheed-Martin P-3C, and Eurocopter EC135. Applications include search-and-rescue (SAR), combat search-and-rescue (CSAR), maritime patrol, counterinsurgency (COIN), law enforcement and sovereignty protection, reconnaissance, armed scout, and target designation.
“In recent weeks FLIR systems’ sensors have been used in the SAR efforts surrounding the North Dakota floods and the Italian earthquake, piracy incidents in the Gulf of Aden, drug interdiction and seizures in the Caribbean.,” continued Sundermeier. “No matter where in the world these types of events take place, it is more than likely that our imaging systems are not only involved, but are saving lives.”
02 Jun 09. Oerlikon and RUAG today