Ministry Of Defence's New Weapon System Will Involve Raytheon's
Electronics Expertise
GLENROTHES, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The Government announced today that a
team, led by Saab Bofors Dynamics AB of Sweden, called Team MBT LAW, has been
selected to provide the British Army's Next Generation Light Anti-Armour
Weapon (NLAW) valued at around #400 million. This announcement will mean
considerable work coming to Raytheon Systems Limited (RSL)'s Glenrothes
facility and will result in an additional 32 jobs.
Lord Bach, the Minister for Defence Procurement, was in the Raytheon plant
today to tell members of the Team MBTLAW of their success. Because of its
importance to the programme Glenrothes had been selected as the location where
the team would assemble to hear the news. Those present included Ingemar
Andersson, President of Saab Bofors Dynamics, Sir Robert Hayman-Joyce,
chairman of Raytheon Systems Limited, and Central Fife MP Mr John MacDougall.
Jim Trail, general manager of the Glenrothes facility, said, "This is
great news for Raytheon and in particular for Glenrothes. Our Scottish
facility will be playing a major role in this programme, enhancing its
reputation as one of the leading electronics businesses in the region and as
one of the UK's prime sites for this type of highly skilled work."
He went on to say, "I would like to thank our local MP John MacDougall who
helped us make our case and all our team members who have been part of a
uniquely strong team. MBT LAW will enable the British Army to do its job more
effectively well into the foreseeable future. The UK taxpayer will get
excellent value for money and the UK industry will be at the forefront of
delivering this programme. We look forward to delivering the system to the
Army and to creating further jobs through exports.
"Long term programmes of this nature lead to good job security and a
buoyant business, which in turn bring positive benefits to the local
community."
NLAW is a man-portable, shoulder launched anti-armour weapon. It features
Fire and Forget capability and is powerful enough to destroy Main Battle
Tanks. The programme calls for many thousands of units to be supplied to the
British Army and in addition the weapon has considerable export potential. As
a result the programme is likely to run for some 10 to 20 years, creating or
sustaining a significant number of high quality, long term jobs in the UK.
RSL Glenrothes will be responsible for the supply of circuit card
assemblies for the weapon's Central Electronics Unit. The facility already
has an excellent track record in Transatlantic weapons programmes and has been
a key player for over 20 years in the technically challenging and fiercely
competitive field of missile electronics. Over 70,000 systems have been
produced in the last 10 years across 14 programmes. Programme experience
includes the production of electronic assemblies for the AIM-120 AMRAAM air-
to-air missile, for which Glenrothes is the sole supplier of Control Sections,
and the Royal Navy's Tomahawk cruise missile, for which it is sole UK supplier
of a number of key components. Glenrothes is also a major supplier of high
reliability electronics to a number of European companies in the automotive
and gas and oil industries.
Raytheon Systems Limited is the UK-based subsidiary of Raytheon Company.
With over 1700 employees throughout the country, RSL serves both defence and
commercial markets. The company is a major supplier to the UK Ministry of
Defence and has won programmes such as ASTOR (Airborne Stand-Off Radar) and
SIFF (Successor Identification Friend or Foe). RSL is involved in bids for
other programmes such as the Royal Navy's Future Carrier (CVF), the British
Army's Light Forces Anti-Tank Guided Weapon and the RAF's Precision Guided
Bomb. RSL also designs, develops and manufactures ATC radar, identification
systems and anti-jam navigation systems. It has a software engineering
facility and is a specialist supplier of semiconductors and power modules,
manufacturing complex electronic systems, sub-systems and assemblies. The
company also undertakes aircraft servicing and modification.
With headquarters in Lexington, Massachusetts, Raytheon Company is a
global technology leader in defence, government, and commercial electronics,
and business and special mission aircraft.
NOTE TO EDITORS
The main MBT LAW team members are: Saab Bofors Dynamics, Thales Air
Defence, BAE SYSTEMS Avionics, BAE SYSTEMS Royal Ordnance, EPS Logistics
Technology, Express Engineering, FR-HiTemp, Nobel Enterprises, Leafield
Engineering, MetalWeb, NP Aerospace, Portsmouth Aviation, Raytheon Systems
Limited, Skeldings, Thales Missile Electronics.
For information contact:
Jackie Berger
+44 (0)20 7569 5516
jackie.berger@raytheon.co.uk
SOURCE Raytheon
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Related links:
http://www.raytheon.com
CONTACT:
Jackie Berger of Raytheon,
+44-(0)20-7569-5516, jackie.berger@raytheon.co.uk
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