DRS Technologies, a Finmeccanica Company, announced that its Network and Imaging Systems group and Thailand's Chaiseri Metal & Rubber Co Ltd. have entered into an exclusive teaming agreement to integrate DRS's C4InSight™ mission command capabilities into the new Chaiseri First Win multi-role armored 4x4 tactical vehicle.

The partnership enables the Chaiseri/DRS team to deliver a combination of innovative Thai engineering with DRS's leading-edge ground vehicle mission systems integration to customers in Thailand and Southeast Asia.

Central to this initiative is the integration of DRS's Data Distribution Unit (DDU) into the Chaiseri vehicles. The DDU enables centralized communication between the C4ISR platform and weapon subsystems and provides a wide range of services including tactical router, voice cross-banding and call management, tactical server, network video distribution, cellular communications, GPS distribution, vehicle power management, peripheral control and vehicle health management. All of these systems are accessible from a connected common tactical workstation via a configurable interface. Third-party applications such as battle management systems can be hosted on a virtual machine and run concurrently with multiple VM services.

C4InSight™ system is a modular, scalable and open architecture communications system with the ability to interface and control a wide range of HF and VHF radios, SATCOM and other line of sight and below line of sight communications mediums. The DDU also provides embedded Wi-Fi for inter-vehicle and intra-vehicle communications.

"This new partnership is an exciting venture for DRS, providing us with the opportunity to establish a relationship with a world-class defense manufacturer like Chaiseri," said Mike Sarrica, president of DRS's Network and Imaging Systems group. "We are excited to team with a company that values the full spectrum of unique capabilities and experience that DRS has to offer in this field on a superior vehicle like the First Win multi-role armored vehicle," Sarrica continued.

Hiran Koolhiran, CEO and Chairman of Chaiseri said, "This teaming agreement represents a big step for our company in the development of a fully integrated and world-leading tactical vehicle that is designed from the ground up for modern network-centric operations."

DRS mission systems solutions are drawn from more than 15 years of successfully supplying its products into some of the largest military tactical command and control projects, including the U.S. Army's Force XXI Battle Command, Brigade and Below (FBCB2) and the Blue Force Tracking program, with over 180,000 systems delivered; the U.S. Army's Movement Tracking System (MTS) program with over 25,000 systems delivered and the U.K. Bowman program with 15,000 systems delivered. Continuing this proven track record, DRS was recently awarded a $455M indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract (IDIQ) contract for the supply of the U.S. Army's next generation of tactical computing. As part of this newly announced effort, a number of these new capabilities will be integrated into the Chaiseri First Win multi-role armored 4x4 tactical vehicle.

Chaiseri will be responsible for in-country installation and on-going support and maintenance of the mission system products and systems. DRS will provide its world-class systems engineering support from its facilities in Melbourne, Florida U.S.A and Farnham U.K.

DRS Technologies
07.12.2013