OSHKOSH, Wis. -- Oshkosh Defense, a division of Oshkosh Corporation, announced it has received two awards valued at more than $24 million from the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command Life Cycle Management Command (TACOM LCMC) for MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) kits for the support of communication equipment and electrical system upgrades.

The combined undefinitized orders consist of more than 2,090 upgrade kits for the vehicles.

The kits will support the installation of Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) suites composed of electronic equipment such as communications hardware, jammer systems, tracking technology and driver vision enhancement. The kits also will support the addition of “silent watch” capability, which allows the M-ATV to operate C4ISR equipment for extended periods of time with reduced noise and heat signatures from the vehicle.

“The C4ISR technology and silent watch capability that these kits support will further enhance the M-ATV’s effectiveness in combat operations in Afghanistan,” said Andy Hove, Oshkosh Corporation executive vice president and president, Defense. “Our advanced manufacturing capabilities, highly skilled workforce and available capacity ensure these upgrades can be completed without impacting our continued rapid delivery of any of our military vehicles under contract.”

Since January 2010, Oshkosh has been incorporating the M-ATV upgrades into the production process at both its M-ATV production facilities, Oshkosh and the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command will install the upgrade kits on vehicles already built.

Oshkosh has exceeded the accelerated M-ATV delivery schedule for seven consecutive months. To date, the aggregate amount of awards Oshkosh has received for 6,619 M-ATVs, upgrade kits, spare parts kits and aftermarket support is valued at more than $4 billion. Existing Oshkosh manufacturing facilities have available production capacity for these M-ATV orders and all other Defense programs, including the U.S. Army’s Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV), as well as any surges in production.

The Oshkosh® M-ATV uses the Oshkosh-patented TAK-4® independent suspension system for superior mobility in harsh environments, including 16 inches of independent wheel travel and a 70 percent off-road profile capability. The TAK-4 system has undergone more than 500,000 miles of government testing and is being retrofitted on more than 2,400 legacy MRAPs for improved mobility in Afghanistan. The TAK-4 system is featured on more than 10,000 Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacements (MTVR), used by the U.S. Marine Corps and Navy Seabees, as well as on the Army’s next-generation Palletized Load System (PLS) and the Marine Corps’ Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR).

Oshkosh
19.02.2010