EUROPE
LAND
29 Jun 06. The UK’s Armed Forces will get an extra 2,000 trucks under a deal
announced today by Defence Procurement Minister, Lord Drayson. The Defence Procurement Minister said the MoD was taking up an option to extend the £1.1bn contract it placed last year and would buy a further 2,077 vehicles in addition to the approx 5,000 earlier announced. Worth in the region of £250m, the taking up of the option with MAN ERF UK Ltd is part of the MoD’s biggest truck deal in over quarter of a century and will see a fleet of new trucks and recovery vehicles replacing the existing vehicles.
29 Jun 06. Dutch Lawmakers Approve Purchase of 200 Boxers: KMW. The Dutch parliament has decided to buy 200 Boxer armored personnel carriers, announced Krauss Maffei-Wegmann (KMW), the German company that produces the vehicles.
In a June 29 press release, KMW described the Dutch decision as a “milestone towards a European-developed and jointly produced armored transport vehicle.” Frank Haun, chief executive of KMW, said the Dutch yes to the Boxer “underlines the strong will of defining and realizing multinational defenseprocurements on a European basis.” The Boxer is a highly mobile four-wheel-drive armored vehicle with a high payload capacity and room for up to 10 soldiers. Its modular design allows the vehicle’s equipment to be changed to suit each mission — including command, medical transport and repair — within minutes. The German Army also intends to buy 200 Boxers with the option to purchase 72 additional vehicles for the medical transport role; approval by the German parliament is expected later this year. (Source: Defense News)
21 Jun 06. Siemens to Provide Maintenance Services, Network and Service Configuration Management, and Juniper Networks M-series Routers for New IP/MPLS Backbone Network Siemens and Juniper Networks (NASDAQ:JNPR) today announced that the Finnish Defense Forces have selected the two companies to deploy a next-generation backbone network that will integrate the data transmission and communication systems for reconnaissance, surveillance and military command. Siemens Osakeyhtio will be responsible for the delivery of the Juniper Networks M-series routers, plus Redcell(TM) network and service configuration suite of products from Dorado Software and related maintenance. The Juniper Networks routers enable the creation of new IP-based services and prevent malicious attacks from compromising data security. At the same time, the transmission network will offer the flexibility to rapidly respond to the demands imposed by potential crises and network outages. The deployment by Siemens will include Juniper Networks M-series routers, which will serve as the backbone of the network. For network and MPLS service configuration management, Siemens will supply the Redcell software from Dorado Software. Additionally, the multi-year contract provides for training, maintenance and spare parts supply. Siemens will deliver Juniper M320 and M10i routers to the Defense Forces. Juniper Networks M-series multiservice edge routers combine best-in-class IP/MPLS capabilities with unmatched reliability, performance and service flexibility. Delivering rich CoS features in combination with the simultaneous support of existing and emerging Layer 2 and Layer 3 services, the M-series offers a long-term, strategic investment for any network operator looking to benefit from the increased reliability, efficiency and flexibility of a multi-service IP/MPLS network. With the new Redcell system, the Defense Forces will get an advanced network and service configuration management system that permits, among other things, secure VPN management of the MPLS network. Redcell also offers a strategic investment as it is designed for a multi-vendor environment and can be used for controlling other network components as well as the M-series. Similarly, the network management software will offer redundancy.
29 Jun 06. The Budget Committ