Tuesday, June 09, 2009

DTN News: ST Engineering's Electronics Arm Awarded Contract for Advanced Combat Man System

DTN News: ST Engineering's Electronics Arm Awarded Contract for Advanced Combat Man System *Source: ST Engineering (NSI News Source Info) SINGAPORE - June 9, 2009: ST Engineering yesterday June 8, announced that its electronics arm, ST Electronics, has been awarded a contract to provide the Advanced Combat Man System (ACMS) to the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The project which is worth over S$100m will commence immediately and is expected to be completed by 2012.The Singapore Armed Forces' Advanced Combat Man System (ACMS) is part of the SAF's move to integrate into 3G to progressively provide tactical units with network capabilities. Key Components *Personal Radio - The radio enables soldiers to share information, in the form of data and voice, with other soldiers. It has a built-in Global Positioning System (GPS) that helps the soldier's command headquarters to track his location and that of friendly forces. *Communication Keypad - This portable keypad, designed for easy data input, also has hotkey buttons such "On-Contact" and "Call-For-Medic" to enable quick updates of the team's status to the command headquarters, and request assistance from nearby forces at the push of a button. *Portable Computer - The brain of the ACMS, the portable computer processes data collected by sensors, GPS, other ACMSs and user input to provide real-time information updates on the battlefield. *Head-mounted display (HMD) - The HMD can switch its displays from a digital map to satellite images of the terrain to videos captured by the various sensors. Through the HMD, soldiers can see locations of targets and friendly forces which are plotted on the digital map. *Weapon Interactor - The section commander will also have an additional camera attached to his SAR 21, so that he can capture and send back images to the command headquarters through the quick buttons on the handguard. The sensor also allows him to survey and fire around corners without exposing himself. In addition to the ACMS, soldiers are equipped with remote sensors such as a surveillance ball, a remote-control surveillance car and a key-hole sensor.* The award of this contract is not expected to have any material impact on the consolidated net tangible assets per share and earnings per share of ST Engineering for the current financial year. The ACMS is a 3rd Generation Networked Warrior system fully equipped with advanced C4I (Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence) and network capabilities. The ACMS is a joint development effort that started in 1998 among the Defence Science and Technology Agency, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and ST Electronics with the support of Singapore Technologies Kinetics Ltd (ST Kinetics) in the area of weapon sub-system. It features innovations from ST Electronics and ST Kinetics. For this contract, ST Kinetics is a subcontractor to ST Electronics. The development of the ACMS focuses on two key areas - to ensure seamless integration of individual soldier's capabilities and to integrate the soldier as part of a network-centric force. As part of the design of the ACMS, key elements such as the weight of the systems, Man-Machine Interface and the networked and interoperable capability of the ACMS with other systems are defined as some of the requirements for its development. This system aims at improving the situational awareness, mobility, command and control, lethality and survivability of the soldier, resulting in a quantum leap in his fighting capabilities. The introduction of the ACMS is a part of SAF's 3rd Generation Transformation to progressively provide tactical units with network capabilities, which are vital for ensuring mission success. The ACMS allows section commanders and team leaders to become a part of a larger network that is able to tap into the wider resources of the battalion and call for more responsive and precise fire support. These sections function not only as fighting units but also as ground sensors, tracking the positions of various forces and feeding images and information back to the command headquarters for enhanced command and control of the battlefield. "With our strong electronics systems expertise, ST Electronics is committed to delivering solutions that aim to enhance the fighting effectiveness and capabilities of our soldiers," said SEAH Moon Ming, Deputy CEO, ST Engineering & President, ST Electronics. ST Electronics (Singapore Technologies Electronics Limited), the electronics arm of ST Engineering, delivers innovative system solutions to government, commercial, defence, and industrial customers worldwide. ST Engineering (Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd) is an integrated engineering group providing solutions and services in the aerospace, electronics, land systems and marine sectors. Headquartered in Singapore, the Group reported revenue of $5.34b in FY2008 and ranks among the largest companies listed on the Singapore Exchange. ST Engineering has more than 19,000 employees worldwide, and over 100 subsidiaries and associated companies in 24 countries and 42 cities.

No comments: