BURLINGTON, Mass., March 27, 2006 – iRobot Corp. announced a new contract delivery order from the U.S. Navy to build additional bomb disposal robots for shipment to the U.S. Forces.

Under the terms, iRobot will deliver an additional 213 iRobot PackBot® Man Transportable Robotic Systems (MTRS), plus spare parts to repair robots in the field. The new award of $26 million marks the third round of funding by the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), bringing the total value of the orders placed to date to more than $43 million.

“The PackBot MTRS robots are helping to reduce casualties as our soldiers battle insurgents who are littering Iraq with thousands of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs),” said Helen Greiner, chairman and co-founder, iRobot. “iRobot continues to develop innovative robot technologies that will offer soldiers options for more safely dealing with bombs and other threats.”

The PackBot MTRS robots are customized for NAVSEA and are based on iRobot’s combat-proven PackBot Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) robots. PackBot MTRS robots are equipped with advanced tools and sensors that enable EOD technicians to identify and disrupt bombs from a safe distance. The U.S. military’s dual-sourced MTRS program has requirements for up to 1200 robots through 2012.

These PackBot MTRS robots will be deployed in Iraq and elsewhere. Currently more than 300 PackBot robots are deployed worldwide where they are used extensively to disarm IEDs. The PackBot robots have performed tens of thousands of missions in the region and are credited with saving scores of soldiers’ lives.

Sergyi Wey
29.03.2006

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