INDUSTRY TEAMINGS
18 Jul 08. ITT Visual Information Solutions (ITT VIS), a wholly owned subsidiary of ITT Corporation, (NYSE: ITT), today announced that it has signed Geosystems SRL as a distributor of ENVI software in Bolivia. Under this authorized distribution agreement, Geosystems will distribute the ENVI family of image processing and analysis products to the growing number of professionals in the region who rely on geospatial imagery and the information it provides for planning, decision-making, research, and science. Geosystems develops integrated solutions based on geographic information systems (GIS), geospatial imagery, GPS, topography and other complementary technologies. It is also the authorized distributor of the ESRI® line of GIS software – ArcGIS® – for Bolivia. “Our goal as a distributor of GIS and remote sensing products in Bolivia is to foster our customers’ success by providing the best geospatial software technology available,” said Carlos Vidal, president of Geosystems. “The ENVI product family from ITT will fit perfectly in our selected suite of solutions.” “We are pleased to become a part of the growing community of GIS and remote sensing professionals in Bolivia. Our partnership with Geosystems will allow us to provide the GIS community with the superior software solutions they need as imagery and imagery processing becomes an integral part of the GIS workflow,” said Richard Cooke, president and COO of ITT Visual Information Solutions.
Jul 08. Elbit Systems and ATK to Develop Laser Guided Advanced Tactical Rocket System. Elbit Systems Ltd. and Alliant Techsystems have signed a teaming agreement to develop the Guided Advanced Tactical Rocket – Laser (GATR-L). GATR-L provides an affordable precision strike capability for all fixed-wing, rotary-wing, and Unmanned Aerial Systems platforms. The 70mm rocket employs a Semi-Active Laser (SAL) guidance package to achieve high accuracy against both stationary and moving targets. In addition, GATR-L provides the ability to lock-on before launch to ensure only the target of interest is engaged. GATR-L is compatible with existing 70mm launcher hardware and utilizes enhanced Insensitive Munitions technologies.
21 Jul 08. Britain’s new naval shipbuilding champion is tapping into the prosperous Middle East market, teaming up with a company in the United Arab Emirates to provide support services. BVT Surface Fleet, which was created last month from the combination of the shipbuilding operations of BAE Systems and VT Group, announced yesterday that it would team up with Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) to provide naval support services in the Gulf region. ADSB is a publicly listed company in the UAE, with a 40 per cent stake held by Mubadala, the Abu Dhabi government’s investment fund, and 10 per cent by the government. (Source: FT.com)
22 Jul 08. Mubadala Development Co., one of the most active of the Persian Gulf’s government investment vehicles, said Tuesday it agreed to an $8bn commercial-finance partnership with General Electric Co. that envisions the Abu Dhabi entity building a significant shareholding stake in the venerable U.S. conglomerate. In a statement, the two companies said they would jointly set up a commercial-finance division aimed at Middle East and African markets. Each company will commit $4bn in equity to the venture. At the same time, Mubadala said it had agreed to become one of GE’s “top ten institutional investors.” It said it would buy shares through the open market, “as conditions allow.” Mubadala didn’t disclose how much of a stake it would ultimately like to build in GE, or when it would start buying. The two companies called the deal a “framework agreement” and said their joint venture and investment plans were still contingent on hammering out a definitive agreement and on regulatory approval. The two companies said they would also cooperate in research and development activities aimed at clean-energy and water projects, as well