CONTRACT NEWS IN BRIEF
EUROPE
LAND
23 Aug 06. Rolls-Royce has been awarded a contract to provide electric power generators for the UK Armed Forces’ Watchkeeper programme. Under the contract, worth £1.2m, Rolls-Royce will supply tactical military generators to Marshall Specialist Vehicles Ltd, who are ground control station shelter integrators on the U-TacS / Thales-led programme. The Rolls-Royce tactical military generators power the network of ground control stations which receive data from an unmanned air vehicle (UAV). Watchkeeper has 24/7 surveillance capability and the generators can be run in parallel to provide clean, uninterruptible power, even while field maintenance is carried out.
21 Aug 06. Thales UK wins contract in excess of £50m for the FALCON Programme. Thales UK has received a contract from BAE Systems worth in excess of £50m to supply the Transmission Subsystem and Security Subsystem for the FALCON Programme. Thales UK is a key partner in the BAE Systems FALCON team, which has been awarded a contract to supply the first increment of the FALCON information infrastructure programme.
SEA
16 Aug 06. HMS ROYAL OAK: Removal of Oil. The Defence Logistics Organisation announced (16 Aug 06) that a contract had been awarded to Briggs Marine Contractors for the removal of oil from the wreck of HMS ROYAL OAK, sunk in Scapa Flow, Orkney Islands. The contract is for two years, with three one-year options. The expectation is that most of the work will take place during the summer months.
Comment: The 25,750-ton battleship ROYAL OAK was commissioned from Devonport in 1914 and sunk at Scapa Flow by U.47 on 14 Oct 39. At the time of sinking, the battleship carried a full load of fuel and ammunition. Over 880 cubic metres of fuel oil have been removed from the wreck, but leakages still occur. The wreck is a recognised war grave with continuing danger from unexploded ordnance. (Source: DNA DEFENCE NEWS ANALYSIS, Issue 0632, 21 Aug 06)
Aug 06. DeepOcean places substantial order for ROVolution simulator
from GRL. General Robotics Limited (GRL), the leading supplier of subsea simulators, has won a substantial order for its ROVolution simulator from DeepOcean AS the subsea services provider. The simulator is being used to train pilots for DeepOcean’s Kystdesign Installer and Supporter ROVs, working from ships and oil platforms in the North Sea and the Mediterranean. Business is booming for DeepOcean and the company urgently needs to train more Installer pilots. The company initially relied on recruiting experienced ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) pilots and then cross-training them on the Installers offshore, but as the volume of work grew, on-the-job training became too slow and expensive. GRL was commissioned to adapt its generic ROVolution simulator for the Installer ROVs.
18 Aug 06. A contract worth some NOK 22m to supply two automated handling systems for remotely-operated vehicles (ROV) has been awarded by Geofjord Shipping AS to ODIM AS. The contract covers launch and recovery systems (LARS), which is a unique concept developed in close cooperation with the customer. LARS is designed to handle equipment which will be used in water depths down to 4 000 metres. The two systems are due to be delivered in the second quarter of 2007. (Source: Shephard)
AIR
21 Aug 06. EDO Corporation has received a long-term support contract from the UK MoD. Under the terms of the contract, EDO will provide technical support, repair, and procurement services for all Royal Air Force and Royal Navy aircraft stores carriage-and-release systems and associated ancillary equipment. The rapid support-supply contract, known as Pillar 3, is valued between $20 and $30m over the next five years.
23 Aug 06. During a presentation at the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense Gripen International has submitted a comprehensive answer to a formal Request for Information regarding the new generation Gripen multi-role fighter. The Bulg