Navistar Defense LLC, of Warrenville, Ill., has recently been awarded two contracts.

The first is for an assortment of automotive parts, including wheels, axles, air conditioners, engines, compressors, generators, and transmissions. Work will be performed primarily in Springfield, Ohio, with limited production in various other cities, This is a firm fixed price contract for $56,857,635 and is expected to be completed by May 4, 2009. C

The second contract is for wheels and pneumatic tires at a firm-fixed price of $21,420,480. Work will be performed in Trenton, N.J., and is expected to be completed by Jan. 30, 2009.

TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity for both.

Source: DoD

HMMWV mods contracted

AM General of South Bend, Ind. has been awarded a $25,741,548.80 firm-fixed contract for reliability enhanced vehicle engineering change engineering change proposals on high mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles.

The work will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009.

Tank-automotive and Armaments Command is the contracting activity.

Source: DoD

Army gets more armored dozers

Caterpillar, Inc. has been awarded a $397,100,467 firm-fixed price contract for light T-5 dozers and medium T-9 dozers with type A armor kits and type C armor kits This includes a five-year requirements contract with one five-year option.

Work will be performed in East Peoria, Ill., and is expected to be completed by Jun. 9, 2018. U.S. Army TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity.

Source: DoD

Vehicle miscellany

Ibis Tek* of Butler, Pa. and LOM* of Chicago are both being awarded indefinite-delivery / indefinite-quantity contracts for MRAP 360 Degree Lighting Kits.

The Ibis Tek contract has a ceiling amount $158,075,500 with options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative ceiling value to $474,226,500. The LOM ceiling is $149,730,000 with options totalling $449,190,000. The work on both contracts is expected to be completed by May 2011. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity.

Stewart & Stevenson TVS, LP, Sealy, Texas, has been awarded a $37,356,777 firm-fixed price contract for low signature armor cabs in a box. Work will be performed in Texas and is expected to be completed by Feb. 19, 2009. U.S. Army TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity.

* DoD indicates these as "Small Business"

Source: DoD
Image: Ibis Tek

U.S. Army to receive more armor kits

BAE Systems will deliver 545 lightweight bar-armor kits to the U.S. Army for installation on ground vehicles. The company received a $23.7 million contract from the Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command Life Cycle Management Command to equip 371 RG-31 vehicles and 174 mine-protected Joint Explosive Ordnance Disposal Rapid Response Vehicles with its L-ROD™ aluminum armor, used widely on Army Buffalo ordnance disposal vehicles.

L-ROD is a modular system made of lightweight aluminum alloy that protects vehicles without adding significant additional weight or compromising their operational capabilities. It weighs less than half of comparable steel systems and is bolted to the vehicle, avoiding the need for welding or cutting. It also can be repaired easily in the field.

BAE Systems originally developed the system as part of a fast-response Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency program to provide rocket-propelled grenade protection for High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles. Army officials conducted more than 50 live-fire tests to validate the system’s performance and optimize the engineering design.

Work will be performed at BAE Systems facilities in Manassas, Virginia, and Austin, Texas.

Source and Photo: BAE

Variants added to S & S contract

Stewart & Stevenson Tactical Vehicle Systems Limited Partnership, Sealy, Texas, has been awarded a $54,312,842 firm-fixed price and cost-reimbursement contract for adding supplemental family of medium tactical vehicle variants to the contract. Work will be performed in Sealy, Texas and is expected to be complete by Nov. 15, 2008. TACOM is the contracting activity.

More info here.

Source: DoD

More Humvee contracts

AM General has been awarded two High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicles contracts.

The first is a $11,601,414 firm-fixed price contract for 101 EA HMMWVs. The second contract is for 54 Humvees and is worth $5,789,443.

Work on both contracts will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009. TACOM is the contracting activity.

Source: DoD
Photo: AM General

Daimler get truck contracts

Daimler Trucks North America has been awarded a $169,990,717 firm-fixed price contract for 600 each of M916A3 (now able to handle add-on armour) light equipment transporters, 150 each, M917A2 dump trucks and 50 each, M917A2 W/MCS (Material Control System) dump trucks.

Work will be performed in Portland, Ore., and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2009.

Daimler has also received $5,991,503 for the addition of M915 test vehicles, test assets, test support design engineering and other non-recurring tooling costs to the contract.

Some facts about the M916A3 6x6 Tractor and M917A2 6x6 Dump Truck: Detroit Diesel S60 (430 hp, 1450 lb-ft torque); Allison 7 speed transmission; Michelin: XZY-3 425/65R22.5 (front) and XDY-3 315/80R22.5 (rear) and Eaton Central Tire Inflation System.

The tractor has a 45,000 lbs capacity winch. The dump truck has a cruising range of 550 miles (100 gal tank; 30 mph @ 68,000 lbs GVW).

Sources: DoD, Daimler Trucks
Photo: Daimler Trucks

Canadians arrested for U.S. fraud

The president and former vice-president of Toronto-based Newcon Optik have recently been arrested. They are alleged to have attempted to defraud the U.S. military of up to $11-million.

It is claimed they attempted to bribe a competitor to withdraw their bid on night vision equipment destined for the new army of Iraq.

The Globe and Mail has the complete story.

Source: The Globe and Mail

In the age of MRAPs a humvee order

The U.S. Army has awarded AM General, LLC, South Bend, Ind. a $650,079,405 firm-fixed price contract for 4,526 high mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles.

Work will be performed in Mishawaka, Ind., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

One bid was solicited on Mar. 17, 2006. TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity.

Other HMMWV, related, stories here.

Source: DoD
Photo: AMC General

BAE MMPVs start rolling

In December 2007, BAE Systems was selected as the prime contractor for the MMPV program, worth up to $2.2 billion to produce up to 2,500 vehicles through 2015, for Army Engineers and Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams. BAE Systems has now received a $132 million production contract from the U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command for 179 Medium Mine Protected Vehicles (MMPV).

Twenty-four of 179 vehicles ordered will include a remotely controlled interrogator arm. MMPV is a multi-purpose, mine protected, 6x6 wheeled vehicle based on BAE Systems' next generation RG33 family of vehicles. The contract brings the total amount awarded to date to $152 million.

Under a strategic public/private partnership agreement, BAE Systems and the Letterkenny Army Depot will perform automotive and final assembly production operations of the vehicles in facilities on and adjacent to the Letterkenny Army Depot facilities in Pennsylvania. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in July 2008 and continue through April 2009.

U.S. Army engineers will use MMPVs to conduct route and area clearance missions, command and control, mount mine clearing systems, and conduct explosive hazards reconnaissance. MMPVs will also be used by Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams.

Source and photo: BAE

More ASVs to Combat Observation and Lasing Teams

Textron Marine & Land has been awarded a $58 million contract modification by the U.S. Army Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command (TACOM) to manufacture 82 additional Armored Security Vehicle (ASV) variants for the M1200 Armored Knight.

The M1200 Armored Knight is an ASV variant equipped with a sensor package that is used to locate and designate targets for indirect fire and laser guided weapons. The specially configured ASV is used by Field Artillery Combat Observation and Lasing Teams (COLT) to carry out its missions.

The ASV vehicle will be provided to DRS Technologies, the prime contractor for the Armored Knight responsible for the integration of the sensor and Mission Equipment Package. The total requirement for the program has been listed at 531 vehicles. In 2007, 19 vehicles were delivered to the customer and it is currently anticipated that 83 will be delivered in 2008 with the remainder to follow in 2009 and beyond.

Source and Photo: Textron

New power source gets push

The Defense Department has awarded Adaptive Materials of Ann Arbor MI a $2.35 million Phase II Small Business Innovation Grant.

Adaptive Materials had previously received $1.75 million from the U.S. Army Tank and Automotive Command to develop its propane fuel cell power system for use on iRobot's PackBot. Operational time is reported to have been extended from 2 to 10 hours.

The new grant will move forward Adaptive Material's efforts to develop its' technology for use with UAVs.

Source: Various Photo: Adaptive Materials