INDUSTRY TEAMINGS
22 May 09. Northrop Grumman Corporation this month submitted its Phase II bid for the prime contractor role for the U.S. Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS) competition. The proposal was submitted to the Army on May 4. Northrop Grumman leads one of two teams awarded an 11-month Phase I contract in Sept. of 2008 to begin preliminary design and development. The Army is expected to down-select to one team in August. IBCS is considered the first step towards an integrated air and missile defense battle command capability for the Army, and a joint capability for the nation. The program will set the stage for future integration of sensors and weapons using standard interfaces.
09 Jun 09. At the second French/German Embedded Systems Symposium held this week at Bercy in Paris, France, Microsoft, Esterel Technologies, and Geensys have taken a leadership role in helping advance the development of technologies and methods in the embedded industries of France and Germany. In order to keep European system and software development engineering in a leadership position, the three companies have agreed to offer a unique set of software development tools at either free or extremely low prices to a network of selected universities and academic institutions offering embedded systems development programs, following the recommendations of the Embedded Systems Commitee of Syntec Informatique at this event. Within the embedded software development industry, Microsoft provides MSDN Academic Alliance, formerly known as MSDN AA, providing the easiest and most inexpensive way for universities to make the Microsoft software available in labs, classrooms, and on student PCs (totally free for students). This membership enables STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) departments to outfit their machines with the latest Microsoft development tools, operating systems, server software, documentation, and technical references (including embedded technology). In addition, students will have complete access to these tools and references for use on their personal computers.
02 Jun 09. Ohio-based ArmorSource has announced a partnership with Eye Tactical to develop a next-generation military combat helmet. ArmorSource, the US Defense Department-approved advanced combat helmet vendor announced the partnership would enable research into a new advanced lightweight protection system for helmets. ArmorSource president and chief technology officer Yoav Kapah said that the company was continuously searching for new solutions to enhance the US warfighter. (Source: army-technology.com)
09 Jun 09. Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and Lockheed Martin have entered into a cooperative agreement with the objective of integrating the Joint Strike Missile on the F-35 Lightning II, also known as the Joint Strike Fighter. Following integration and certification, the Joint Strike Missile (JSM), could be carried internally and externally on the F-35. The JSM is a new missile that builds on the mature Naval Strike Missile technology, which is currently in production for the Royal Norwegian Navy and the Polish Navy. The Norwegian MoD awarded a contract to KONGSBERG in April 2009 for the first phase of the JSM development. The agreement signed today follows on to the Joint Marketing Agreement from 2007. The Joint Marketing Agreement resulted in the development contract for the first phase of the JSM program and U.S. Government decision to include the JSM as a candidate in its future efforts to provide the F-35 with air-to-surface warfare capability. (Source: Google)