BAE Systems withdraws from Canadian military aircrew training competition

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  February 16, 2021 | Local, Land

  SOUCY DEFENSE DIVISION AWARDED $7.5M CONTRACT TO INTEGRATE COMPOSITE RUBBER TRACK TO THE NORWEGIAN ARMOURED COMBAT SUPPORT VEHICLE

  SOUCY INTERNATIONAL Inc. (DEFENSE DIVISION) AWARDED CONTRACT TO INTEGRATE SEGMENTED COMPOSITE RUBBER TRACK ON TO U.S ARMY OMFV TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATOR 11 February 2021 – Drummondville QC Canada, Soucy International Defense Division, has been awarded a contract to manufacture and deliver prototype Segmented Composite Rubber Track (SCRT) systems for the U.S Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC) as part of the Platform Electrification and Mobility (PEM) project This project has been created to help develop, integrate and test essential electrification and mobility technologies necessary for soldier experimentation of manned and unmanned Next Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV) platforms. Within the NGCV program, there is the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV) and the Robotically Controlled Vehicle (RCV). Soucy will refine existing SCRT technology as part of the OMFV Demonstrator within the PEM program that is aimed to achieve its goal of silent mobility, reduce track system weight compared to conventional steel tracks, reduce rolling resistance, and ease maintenance and logistical burden. One of the major technical objectives of the PEM project is to provide silent mobility for a 50-ton tracked vehicle. Continuous composite rubber track (CRT) solutions provide significant noise and vibration reduction compared to a typical steel track. Soucy CRT has made great improvements over the last 15 years, with the continuous, single loop design providing significant reductions in weight; vibration; acoustic and thermal signature; increased fuel efficiency, and ease of maintenance, allowing for reduced logistical support. Segmentation of a composite rubber track could potentially further reduce soldier physical maintenance burden, vehicle installation time, and ease overall sustainment challenges in a contested operational environment. This prototype will allow the United States (US) Army and Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC) to evaluate demonstrated options of different track systems for the OMFV program. -ends- Media Contacts: Angeline Heckel-Elies, Soucy Defense Division, +1 (819) 474 4522, Angeline.heckel-elies@soucy-group.com About CRT Tracks Increased durability over conventional steel tracks. Reduced vibration (up to 70%), noise (up to 13dB), thermal signature, braking distance, vehicle weight (up to 50%) and fuel consumption (up to 30%). Reduced vehicle crew fatigue. Significant reduction in life cycle costs and virtually maintenance free. Elimination of damage to infrastructure. About Soucy Soucy has been established for 50 years and specialize in the design, development, and manufacturing of CRT. Soucy supply a variety of components and parts for major manufacturers of power sport, industrial, agricultural and Defense vehicles around the world. Since entering the Defense market 26 years ago, the demand for Soucy's products has grown, and now being utilised in 12 counties worldwide. Soucy's expertise and knowledge of rubber track applications lie in compounding and track construction. The key elements in exceeding the specifications of traditional Steel Tracks and meeting customer requirements is the relationship between the Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW) and rubber heat generation, this balance is critical in the design of CRT. www.soucy-defense.com

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  August 17, 2020 | Local, Naval

  Davie Shipyard Begins Halifax-Class Frigate Mid-Life Refit Program

  Quebec-based shipbuilder Davie Shipyard welcomed on 11 August the Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS St. John for major refit and upgrade. The event marks the start of a long-term naval maintenance and upgrade program that will keep the Halifax-class frigates operational until the arrival of the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) in the 2040s. According to the shipyard, the event was a key milestone in Davie's near 200-year history marking the return of Canada's primary surface combat ships to Québec. Three of the 12 frigate fleet were built at Davie in the 1990s (HMCS Ville de Quebec, HMCS Regina and HMCS Calgary). The $500 million performance-based contract to carry out an extensive mid-life refit on the Royal Canadian Navy's patrol frigates is for an initial five-year period. It is expected to increase in duration and value as new work packages are added. Davie Shipyard, alongside Seaspan Victoria Shipyards in British Columbia and Irving Shipyards in Nova Scotia are all participating in the $1.5-billion maintenance and upgrade program. Over the past 12 months a major facility upgrade program was completed at the West end of Davie shipyard and in the historic Lorne drydock to provide a long-term maintenance home for Canada's surface combat fleet and its supporting naval staff. Davie Shipyard added in a statement that docking maintenance work periods are critical to ensure the RCN has at least 8 of its 12 patrol frigates ready for deployment at all times until the class is replaced by the Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC) in the early 2040s. According to Timothy Choi, naval analyst at the University of Calgary in Canada, the mid-life refit work will focus on the hull, mechanical, and electrical works that were not included as part of the FELEX upgrades. “The only substantial new component that I'm aware of are the four .50cal remote weapons system” Choi added. Raytheon Canada Limited was awarded in March 2016 a contract to install up to 58 Naval Remote Weapon Stations (NRWS) on Royal Canadian Navy surface vessels. The NRWS are .50 cal Mini typhoon RWS by Israeli company Rafael, modified and adapted by Raytheon. About Halifax-class Frigates HMCS Regina sailing past the Greater Victoria Shoreline en route to Hawaii. Photo credit: MS Dan Bard The 12 Canadian-built Halifax-class multi-role patrol frigates are considered the backbone of the Royal Canadian Navy. They can deploy anywhere in the world in support of the Government of Canada. Under the Halifax-class Modernization / Frigate Life Extension project, the frigates received a number of upgrades to ensure they have the capabilities to meet the new threats and changing operating environments of today. Enhanced capabilities include: new Combat Management System (CMS 330) 57mm Mk3 naval gun system MASS decoy launchers new Integrated Platform Management System CH-148 Cyclone helicopter capability Advanced Harpoon Weapon Control System new ESM Smart-S Mk2 radar CEROS 200 fire control radar The first modernized Halifax-class frigates were delivered in late 2014, and the last ship in 2018. Halifax-class specifications Length: 134 metres Beam: 16 metres Complement: 225 personnel https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/08/davie-shipyard-begins-halifax-class-frigate-mid-life-refit-program/

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  March 6, 2020 | Local, C4ISR, Security

  Pentagon push to boost cybersecurity could affect Canadian suppliers

  We're at cyberwar every day' - Ellen Lord, the U.S. undersecretary of defence for acquisition Murray Brewster · The Pentagon has been engaged in a quiet, deliberate effort to plug all of the cyber-holes in its high-tech systems and among its defence contractors — an operation that will soon spill across the border into Canada. Ellen Lord, the U.S. undersecretary of defence for acquisition and sustainment, said today cybersecurity has been one of her biggest concerns since being appointed by the Trump administration two and a half years ago. Increasingly, major defence contractors have found themselves targeted by hackers from China and Russia who have stolen troves of sensitive data on new and existing weapons systems. "Bottom line is, I don't think the average American citizen understands that we're at cyberwar every day," Lord told the Conference of Defence Associations Institute's annual meeting in Ottawa today. The burden of keeping data secure is being placed on the companies themselves, she added. After consulting with the National Security Agency (NSA), the U.S. electronic spy service and the military's Cyber Command, the Pentagon rolled out a new program in January aimed at forcing defence contractors to deal with points of vulnerability. "We have written new cyber security standards that we are putting in all of our new contracts," said Lord. "We are looking at the defence industrial base and how they need to address cyber security and how we as a government can hold them accountable." The initiative includes a cyber security "certification and accreditation" system, similar to the International Organization for Standardization. Lord said it's not a one-size fits all solution and that companies looking to do business with the Pentagon will have to meet one of five levels of certification, depending upon the contract. The defence industrial complexes of Canada, Britain and Australia are tightly stitched into the U.S. system. Lord said allies are looking at a similar measures which she hopes to see coordinated with American efforts. "This is something we're talking with Canada about, with allies and partners, because a lot of us are doing the same thing," she said. The problems with existing systems — software already in the field — is being dealt with aggressively. Contractors who are responsible for maintaining complex systems on warships and aircraft are being told by the Pentagon to close their potential security gaps. "We are going to start shutting equipment down if they are not brought up to standard because every day we see [intelligence], we see how much has been compromised," Lord said. Troy Crosby, head of the Canadian Department of National Defence's materiel branch, said Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada has launched a "cyber secure program" and there's a hope that the two countries can find a way to align their efforts. Some analysts and critics in the U.S. have argued that contractors — even those that make cyber security a priority — will find the cost of meeting uniform standards prohibitive. Beyond that, many major contractors have complex supply chains with many smaller companies that also would be required to spend substantial sums of money to keep up with evolving threats. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/pentagon-contractors-cyber-security-1.5487452