Following a competition, the ARTEC (ARmoured TEChnology) consortium was awarded a contract to develop a new 8x8 armoured vehicle to meet German and UK requirements.

In the UK, the vehicle is known as the Multi-Role Armoured Vehicle (MRAV), while in Germany it is referred to as the Gepanzertes Transport Kraftfahrzeug (GTK). The Netherlands subsequently joined the programme and the vehicle has now been named Boxer.

The ARTEC consortium originally consisted of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall Land Systeme (Germany) and Alvis Vickers (UK). The Stork company of the Netherlands then joined the industrial consortium.

A total of 12 prototypes are being built; these were to be followed by an initial production run of 600 vehicles with each country taking 200 Boxers. In 2003 the UK stated that it would withdraw from the programme, although it is still providing funding for the development phase.

The UK withdrawal from the production phase has increased the unit price and, as of mid-2004, it is still not certain whether Boxer will enter production for Germany and the Netherlands.

MRAV consists of an armoured chassis containing the German-supplied power pack and the driver's station, which can be rapidly fitted with a variety of mission modules. These include troop carrier, command post, ambulance (with higher roof), mortar carrier and recovery vehicle.

Various weapon stations can be fitted on the roof: the UK opted for a 12.7mm machine gun turret while Germany selected a 40mm automatic grenade launcher.

Standard equipment includes a nuclear, biological and chemical defensive system, powered steering, passive night-vision equipment, anti-lock braking system, climate-control system and built-in test equipment.

Compared to most other wheeled vehicles, MRAV has a very high level of protection against small-arms fire, shell fragments, top-attack bomblets and some anti-tank weapons.

The design is based on a modular structure selected to give the maximum flexibility for multi-purpose operation. The vehicle incorporates a high level of standardisation and uses commercially proven automotive components. The 8x8 vehicle provides a load capacity to 8t and has an internal capacity of more than 14m³.

The Mission modules, which fit into the base vehicle, provide static battlefield installations to suit the nation specific requirements, including headquarters, medical units and logistic centres. The modules incorporate a primary safety cell with a triple floor. The base vehicle operates independently from the modules. The units are air transportable. The modules are interchangeable in less than one hour.

The weapon station is reconfigurable to suit the specific national requirement and the module for mission specific equipment is replaceable within one hour. Hagglunds Vehicle was selected by Alvis to produce the weapon stations for the British vehicles which was to be armed with a 12.7mm machine gun.

The basic shell is made of high-hardness steel. Modular armour is sandwiched between the vehicle cell and the steel coat and all three elements are secured by fastening bolts. Currently the modular armour, which includes top attack protection against bomblet, is a specialised ceramic mix. The modular design will allow future generations of armour technologies to be fitted in place of current designs by simple slab replacement. The hull is designed to beat blast mine attack by shaping blast away. Additionally a double-lined hull soaks up critical blast deformation.

The vehicle’s thermal acoustic and radar signature management capability is in the forefront of armoured vehicle stealth technology and provides a low signature.

The vehicle will be fitted with a 530kW MTU engine coupled to an Allison model HD4070 fully automatic transmission with seven forward and three reverse gears. Permanent eight-wheeled drive, all-round independent suspension and central tyre inflation system (CTIS) will give excellent road and cross-country mobility. A road range of over 1,000km, combined with a very smooth and quiet ride provides an unaided operational deployability unmatched among in-service armoured utility vehicles.