Sponsored by TEK Military Seating Limited
http://www.tekmilitaryseating.co.uk/
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16 Mar 24. Ministry of Defence and McLaren team up to drive innovation.
McLaren Racing’s Accelerator arm and the Ministry of Defence are teaming up to collaborate on high-tech, innovative projects.
A British Army land rover with an electric engine sits alongside the NEOM McLaren Extreme E race car. MOD Crown Copyright 2024.
As part of the new partnership, the MOD will learn from McLaren Racing’s cutting-edge Accelerator team, who use knowledge and expertise from years of elite-level motorsport to produce advanced technology and manufacturing. McLaren and the MOD will work closely together to find new solutions for a variety of defence projects.
Projects could include electrification of new military vehicles and future power options for the armed forces, which will increase operational effectiveness.
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said:
This exciting partnership will see McLaren Racing bring their world-class expertise from the racetrack into a number of defence projects.
By collaborating with industry we will continue to drive innovation through knowledge sharing, which will benefit Defence’s engineering and operations across the course of the partnership and beyond.
One of the projects that may benefit from the partnership is the electrification of armoured vehicles (Project LURCHER), which aims to meet the Army’s intention to transition to electric vehicle technology. To mark the start of the partnership, the NEOM McLaren Extreme E race car was shown alongside a Project LURCHER vehicle at the BattleLab – a Defence Innovation co-creation space based in Dorset.
Electrification could make military vehicles more operationally effective, including by using novel power sources to cut down the need to resupply, therefore reducing the vulnerability of forces in the field. Tech innovation can also help with increased range for vehicles.
Matt Dennington, Co-Chief Commercial Officer, McLaren Racing, said:
This new partnership with the Ministry of Defence provides a great opportunity to stretch and apply our innovation and technological know-how and a high-performance culture with a view to improving operational efficiencies across a wide range of exciting projects.
Under the multi-year partnership, the Ministry of Defence will collaborate through McLaren Accelerator to apply motorsport innovation and insights to projects that are jointly selected by Defence and McLaren teams.
(Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
14 Mar 24. India upgrades BMP-2 IFVs through local suppliers. This upgrade includes night enablement, gunner main sight, commander panoramic sight and fire control system with automatic target trackers.
In an effort to bolster the ‘Self-Reliant India’ Government initiative, domestic defence suppliers have made armament upgrades to 693 BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles (IFV) in the Indian Army’s inventory.
According to GlobalData intelligence, India operates 2,500 BMP-2 Sarath vehicles – India’s version of the original Russian BMP-2 IFV.
This is just one platform among a much larger list of Russian-made systems that the sub-continental nation employs, in addition to as many as 1,650 T-90S main battle tanks as well as three S-400 missile defence systems, which have long been subject to American rebuke.
India’s BMP-2s will upgrade to the BMP-2M variant, which includes night enablement, gunner main sight, commander panoramic sight and fire control system (FCS) with automatic target trackers.
The contract was signed on 13 March 2024 with Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVNL), a state-owned company based in Chennai, a coastal town in the south-east of the country.
AVNL has developed an indigenised solution for providing existing BMP-2/2K with night fighting capabilities and FCS based on the integration of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Chennai-developed sight and FCS.
The BMP-2M IFV was originally designed and developed by the Russian defence manufacturer, Kurganmashzavod JSC. The upgraded vehicle is being offered in two different configurations, which include BMP-2M (sb4-2) and BMP-2M (sb4-3). The Indian Ministry of Defence did not disclose which variant it has opted for, or whether its local suppliers offered a uniqe, national configuration.
The Russian Ministry of Defence signed a framework with the company in 2016 to acquire 540 M variants, a deal that will conclude in 2027.
Its armament is equipped with a Berezhok (B05S011) combat module integrating four 9M133 Kornet series anti-tank guided missiles. The missiles are launched from the twin launchers mounted on either side of the turret.
The turret is also armed with a 30- millimetre (mm) 2A42 automatic gun, a 7.62mm PKT coaxial machine gun and a 30mm AG-17 automatic grenade launcher.
The hull of the IFV is protected by appliqué armour, which enables the vehicle to withstand 12.7mm B-3232 rounds and high-explosive anti-tank missiles.
BMP-2M is equipped with a multi-channel optical system for stabilisation of view during firing. The vehicle has an advanced target detection system, a laser range-finder and a thermal imaging system to improve the accuracy of target detection and mission efficiency. The target detection ranges of the vehicle during the day and night are 5,000 metres (m) and 3,000m respectively. (Source: army-technology.com)
15 Mar 24. Toyota approves SVI’s Hilux armouring package, making it available through dealer network. After rigorous testing and certification by Toyota engineers, Toyota South Africa Motors is now fully endorsing SVI Engineering’s Stopgun V2.0 armour package for the Hilux single cab bakkie series, with the armour package available to order from the 200+ Toyota dealerships around the country.
SVI held a celebration and certificate handover ceremony at its Bashewa facility east of Pretoria on 14 March, confirming SVI as an authorised converter and commercial vehicle partner.
There are many armoured vehicle manufacturers in South Africa that fit armour to commercial and civilian vehicles, but it is almost unheard of for the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to endorse the conversion and provide a warranty following modifications.
As a result of Toyota’s endorsement, the Hilux Stopgun V2.0’s standard manufacturer warranty and service plan remain intact, while the entire package – including the price of the base vehicle and the cost of the armouring kit – can be fully financed.
“We’re exceptionally proud that our partnership with South Africa’s best-selling automaker – and our status as an authorised converter in Toyota’s commercial-vehicle partner programme – means the B6 Stopgun V2.0 package is now officially part of Toyota’s Conversions and Accessories product line-up, and is thus available to order from dealers nationwide,” said Nicol Louw, SVI Business Development Director. “Already well proven in the field, our Stopgun V2.0 package has also passed Toyota’s rigorous durability test, which in itself is the ultimate stamp of approval.”
Rigorous testing
Testing and evaluation took about a year to complete, and involved a durability programme that included two 8 000 km stints on Toyota SA Motors’ dedicated durability track in KwaZulu-Natal. Each run represented 100 000 km of real-world usage. A full teardown followed to allow Toyota’s engineers to inspect the status of all items, while the uprated door hinges and mounting points (plus the door-check straps) were put through 20 000 opening-and-closing cycles.
The Stopgun V2.0 package adds about 400 kg of weight to the Hilux. It comprises integrated door armour, flat 38 mm armoured glass that is bolted into each window frame to allow for fuss-free replacement, and B6 bullet-resistant protection for the roof, front fenders, all pillars and part of the firewall as well as critical under-bonnet components such as the battery and ABS unit.
The curtain airbag remains fully functional. Gunports are provided as standard but can be deleted upon request, while a front suspension upgrade is also included in the price, and the rear bumper is reinforced as standard.
SVI said its Stopgun V2.0 package provides South Africa’s security forces with a cost-effective B6 (up to 7.62×51 mm calibre) armouring solution to combat general crime, escort valuables in transit or use for mining patrols. A kit takes three weeks to install on one of Toyota’s four single cab Hilux versions, at a cost of just over R333 000 per vehicle.
Worthwhile partner
Aidan Castille, General Manager: Conversions and Accessories at Toyota South Africa Motors, told defenceWeb that SVI is a worthwhile and valuable partner that has been a good match over the years – SVI has armoured hundreds of Toyota vehicles in the past, for private individuals as well as security companies, and uses the Land Cruiser 79 chassis as the basis of its Max 3 armoured personnel carrier.
He said that if the market is big enough, Toyota will look at officially endorsing the Stopgun V2.0 for the Hilux double cab series, and is open to exploring similar projects with SVI.
SVI’s Stopgun V2.0 kit has been fitted to a wide range of vehicles, including the Toyota Land Cruiser, Ford Ranger, Nissan Navara, and Hino 500 series.
SVI’s product catalogue includes everything from civilian and security vehicle armour to armoured guardhouses, bullet-resistant vests and military-spec armoured personnel carriers. The company has even armoured locomotives powering long trains of high-value cargo through parts of Africa.
With the escalation of crime across South Africa, many private and commercial entities and people are looking to acquire armoured vehicles, especially following the civil unrest of July 2021. SVI, as a result, has doubled the size of its production facilities outside Pretoria.
In addition to armoured civilian vehicles, SVI manufactures two armoured personnel carriers (APCs): the lightweight Max 3 and larger Max 9. The cost competitive Toyota Land Cruiser-based Max 3 has proven popular, with customers including multiple security firms. The South African National Defence Force took delivery of half a dozen Max 3s earlier this year. (Source: https://www.defenceweb.co.za/)
13 Mar 24. Japan to order new combat vehicles in 2024. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) will procure two new vehicles based on the Type 16 8×8 wheeled Mobile Combat Vehicle (MCV) in 2024, a Japan Ministry of Defense’s (MoD’s) Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) spokesperson told Janes in early March.
In the fiscal year (FY) 2024 plan, the MoD has allocated JPY24.2 bn (USD164 m) to procure 24 infantry combat vehicles (ICVs) and JPY8 bn to procure eight manoeuvre mortar combat vehicles (MMCVs) for the JGSDF, the spokesperson said. Both vehicles are based on the Type 16 MCV.
The MoD intends to sign a contract with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) in FY 2024 to procure the ICVs and MMCVs, and the delivery of vehicles will start in 2027, with the final delivery in 2028, the spokesperson added. (Source: Janes)
14 Mar 24. North Korea’s Kim ‘drives’ new tank during mock battle. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a military demonstration involving a new battle tank, state media KCNA reported on Thursday, in the latest show of force by the isolated state as South Korea and the United States wrapped up joint drills.
Kim expressed “great satisfaction” that the new type of main battle tank successfully demonstrated its striking power in its first performance display on Wednesday, KCNA said.
The “training match” was designed to inspect the combat capabilities of tank crews and make them familiar with combat action on different tactical missions, it said.
“Swiftly weaving their way through various worst combat circumstances, heavy tanks hit targets at once with powerful strikes and broke through strong defence lines with high manoeuvrability,” the report said.
The 105th Tank Division, which was declared the winner of the mock battle, was the unit which occupied the South Korean capital Seoul during the Korean War, KCNA said.
Kim was joined by senior officials including Defence Minister Kang Sun Nam at the event.
In a photograph published by KCNA, the leader of the reclusive state could be seen with his head peaking out of a tank as the state media reported he drove the tank himself.
Meanwhile, other photographs showed Kim sporting a leather jacket and surrounded by troops, and also tanks with the North Korean flag blasting ammunition on a field.
The mock battle comes as joint annual drills involving South Korea and the U.S. were due to wrap up on Thursday. The drills, known as the Freedom Shield exercises, were the first to take place since Pyongyang scrapped a 2018 inter-Korean military pact aimed at de-escalating tensions in November.
As part of the drills, South Korea’s army said the combined forces had conducted a joint live fire exercise at a training base in the city of Pocheon in the past week.
The live fire drill featured tanks, armoured cars as well as FA-50 fighter jets, the army said in a statement.
North Korea has long condemned such military drills as rehearsals for war, while Seoul has portrayed the exercises as purely defensive.
Kim’s appearance at the demonstration comes after he guided an artillery firing drill by the Korean People’s Army, the country’s military force, last week.
The drill involved units near the border that are in firing range of “the enemy’s capital,” KCNA said, referring to Seoul, which has nearly 10 m residents. (Source: Reuters)
11 Mar 24. Alcon Celebrates 15 Years of Dedicated Defence Braking Success. Alcon Components Ltd, the highly acclaimed UK-based brake and clutch company, is celebrating the key milestone of 15 years since supplying their first fully designed for Defence caliper. The company has deep roots in the highest echelons of motorsport and performance automotive that have been extended, over time, to include multiple other specialist sectors. As well as a considerable 25(+) years in defence and security, Alcon has also effectively diversified into aerospace ground support, agriculture, mining, emergency services, leisure off-road, light commercial, off-highway and electric vehicles.
Having been supplying heavy duty brake kits for armoured vehicles to companies such as Jankel and Jaguar Land Rover since the 1990’s, the very first bespoke Alcon defence project was an iron caliper solution for Ricardo started in August 2008. Alcon were asked to provide prototype calipers for a modified RWMIK Land Rover that was going to be demonstrated to the UK MoD that October. Alcon designed, manufactured, and tested a six-piston aluminium billet caliper within six weeks that was used on the demonstrator vehicle. They received an order for production components in November 2008, which allowed the company to tool up for their first production iron caliper, delivered in early 2009. This project was shortly followed by an order from Supacat to improve the Jackal braking system that had become overmatched by the addition of heavy armour systems, to meet increasing threats in Afghanistan. This project included iron calipers, braking discs, and friction pads. The iron caliper range is now firmly embedded into the Alcon offering across multiple applications, alongside their aluminium high performance and motorsport ranges.
Alcon’s journey into the defence and security sector has been split across three different strategic approaches: off-the-shelf kits for companies armouring SUVs; bespoke braking solutions for OEMs; and the supply of braking solutions to established axle manufacturers who sell into defence and the off-highway vehicle markets (amongst others). Across all three areas, Alcon’s defence and security business has grown 500% in the last 2 0 years and their specialist vehicle division now delivers around 20% of Alcon’s total annual revenue, on average.
Since the first bespoke Defence project was delivered in 2008, Alcon’s defence and security customer base has grown steadily to include over 15 defence vehicle OEM’s with bespoke Alcon braking solutions including BAE, QinetiQ, Patria and Supacat. On the kit side, Alcon has sold off-the-shelf kits to over 50 armouring companies including JLR, Babcock, Jankel, UTAC and many others, for vehicles including Toyota, Ford, General Motors, Jeep, Lexus, Land Rover, Mercedes, Nissan, Chrysler (Dodge/RAM) and Skoda. Axle customers have included AxleTech, BASE, SISU and PRM Newage with the heaviest single caliper having been designed for AxleTech (now Cummins) weighing 27kg each. Vehicle weights range from 1,500kg to 60,000kg and applications range from heavily armoured tracked vehicles to lightweight side-by-side ATVs plus, everything in between.
Jonathan Edwards, Group Sales Director at Alcon said: “Working in defence and security makes us exceedingly proud as we know that the improvements in performance and safety that our braking systems deliver, help to save the lives of those operating in dangerous and harsh environments with militaries and NGO’s. In the last 25(+) years, we’ve worked with over 80 different defence and security customers and in that time, we’ve manufactured and delivered tens of thousands of brake components for this sector. The transition from aluminium to iron calipers in 2008 was a pivotal move for us as it has since opened up wide-ranging opportunities in specialist areas other than defenceâ€. He added: “We’ve absolutely proven ourselves to be the place to come to for bespoke or off-the-shelf braking solutions that increase performance, reduce weight, improve safety, and reduce through-life costs. Today’s celebration of success is a proud moment for me and for the entire team. I thank all our defence and security customers for trusting in us and we look forward to continuing to deliver our ongoing growth plans in this important marketplace
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TEK Military Seating Limited
TEK Military Seating Limited is a UK based designer and manufacturer of ProTEK military vehicle seating which offer the highest standards of safety and protection. The ProTEK brand is well respected across the globe for its robust construction, innovative design, built in modularity and cost effectiveness. Our superior products are supported by our experienced team who endeavor to offer unrivalled service to our customers from enquiry, through design and acceptance, to through life support.
From its inception ProTEK seats have been designed around a family of innovative seat frames onto which tested and certified modules can be fitted to create a bespoke solution for the user. These include Blast protection to Stanag 4569 standards, vibration reduction, head and body protection, seat risers and turntables, fore & aft adjustment, and seat back rake along with viable seat dimensions without the need for additional tooling costs.
Contact: David Parkman
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