Defense industry reports improving post-COVID supply chain

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  September 4, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  Le missilier MBDA et Soitec reprennent Dolphin Integration, un spécialiste français des circuits intégrés

  Posté dans Technologie par Laurent Lagneau Alors que l'industrie française de l'armement cherche à limiter autant que possible le recours à des composantes relevant de la Réglementation américaine sur le trafic d'armes au niveau international [ITAR] afin d'éviter toute restriction à l'exportation, il aurait été dommage de voir l'entreprise iséroise Dolphin Integration, spécialisée, avec ses 130 ingénieurs, dans la conception de circuits intégrés et de composants dits virtuels analogiques et numériques, fermer ses portes. D'autant plus que cette PME, créée en 1985, avait été sélectionnée par l'Agence européenne de défense [AED] dans le cadre du programme SOC – System on Chip [.pdf], visant à permettre aux industriels européens de l'armement d'accéder à des technologies « ITAR Free » pour « des petits et moyens volumes à des prix compétitifs. » En outre, elle a mené des projetspour le compte de la Direction générale de l'armement [DGA], via le dispositif RAPID Or, en juillet, faisant face à d'importants problèmes de trésorerie et à un chiffre d'affaires en recul, Dolphin Integration a été placé en redressement judiciaire. Et l'entreprise avait jusqu'à la mi-janvier 2019 pour trouver une solution pour assurer la poursuite de ses activités. Cette mésaventure lui est arrivée alors qu'elle avait l'ambition de devenir un acteur mondial de « la conception et de l'optimisation de circuits intégrés dédiés à la très faible consommation d'énergie » et de s'intéresser aux marchés de l'Internet des objets (IoT), de l'automobile et de la défense. Mais il n'aura pas fallu attendre bien longtemps pour voir la situation de Dolphin Integration s'éclaircir étant donné que le missilier MBDA et Soitec, le spécialiste français de la production de matériaux semi-conducteurs, se sont associés pour reprendre la PME iséroise. Dans le détail, le capital de Dolphin Integration sera détenu à hauteur de 40% par MBDA et de 60% par Soitec. Les deux industriels ont pris l'engagement d'investir 6 millions d'euros ensemble. De quoi permettre d'acquérir « la plupart des actifs de Dolphin Integration », de payer « certaines dettes » et d'opérer une « importante injection de liquidités destinée à financer les besoins en fond de roulement. » Étant déjà un client « stratégique » de Dolphin Integration pour les « applications liées à l'armement depuis 2004 », MBDA va accentuer la coopération industriel avec la PME tout en lui « offrant une perspective commerciale à long terme en matière de circuits ASIC (circuits intégrés propres à une application spécifique) et systèmes sur puces. » « L'investissement de MBDA va renforcer la base industrielle de Dolphin Integration dédiée à l'armement français. Il va en effet lui apporter une source plus stable de revenus liés à la défense ainsi qu'une coopération technologique plus étroite ouvrant à son offre microélectronique spécialisée l'accès à l'ensemble de l'industrie de l'armement française et européenne », a expliqué Antoine Bouvier, le Pdg du missilier. http://www.opex360.com/2018/08/24/missilier-mbda-soitec-reprennent-dolphin-integration-specialiste-francais-circuits-integres/

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  December 10, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  Why the Navy will deactivate an F-35 Squadron next year

  By: Mark D. Faram The Navy will deactivate the Grim Reapers of Strike Fighter Squadron 101, consolidating all Joint Strike Fighter operations and training at California's Naval Air Station Lemoore, officials confirmed on Friday. The squadron has been based at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. It was reactivated in 2012 as the Navy's initial F-35C fleet replacement squadron. At the time, the Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force Joint Strike Fighter replacement squadrons were located there as well. The move of the Grim Reapers' 15 aircraft is slated to be effective on July 1, according to OPNAV notice 5400. “The Navy is moving forward with the deactivation of VFA-101 at Eglin AFB next year, and the re-alignment of F-35C assets into Strike Fighter Squadrons to support VX-9 Detachment Edwards AFB, Air Warfare Development Command (NAWDC) at NAS Fallon and maintain Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) production at VFA-125, while transitioning Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet squadrons to the F-35C Lightning II,” wrote Lt. Travis Callaghan, a Naval Air Forces spokesman, in an email to Navy Times. The shift to California should see the Grim Reapers' 29 officers and 239 enlisted personnel replace their patches with those of the “Rough Raiders” of Strike Fighter Squadron 125, Lemoore's F-35C replacement squadron. “This will co-locate the fleet replenishment squadron production of pilots directly into the operational squadrons scheduled for transition to F-35C,” according to a note in the directive ordering the move. The extra aircraft, pilots and maintainers at Lemoore are expected to help the Pentagon meet its testing and evaluation requirements for the the Navy's first operational fleet F-35C squadron, VFA-147, That major milestone for the Navy's JSF program is still slated to happen in 2019. The maiden overseas deployment of VFA-147 is anticipated in 2021 while embarked on the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson. Deactivating VFA-101 wasn't the Navy's original plan. Officials wanted to move the squadron to Lemoore in early 2017. Then the Navy decided to keep VFA-101 at Eglin and stood up a second training squadron, VFA-125, at Lemoore. At the time, officials told Navy Times there was “no plan in the foreseeable future for VFA-101 to be stood down” because “the requirement is for two FRS while we are transitioning squadrons.” The Grim Reapers could be resurrected if the Navy chooses to have an F-35 replacement squadron on both coasts. The OPNAV note requires the Navy to “maintain VFA 101 squadron lineage (name, UIC, insignia, call sign, etc.) for future reactivation.” But bringing the Grim Reapers back to life likely won't happen for at least a decade. That's because the Navy has yet to start the process of naming a home base for its East Coast F-35Cs. It requires extensive environmental impact studies before senior leaders make the final decision on where the squadrons will go. And that, Navy officials say, isn't expected to start until the mid-2020′s at the earliest. https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2018/12/07/why-the-navy-will-deactivate-an-f-35-squadron-next-year/

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  August 14, 2020 | International, Land

  AM General CEO on acquisition by a private equity firm

  WASHINGTON ― KPS Capital Partners is acquiring Humvee-maker AM General, the private equity firm announced last month, marking a new chapter for the South Bend, Indiana-based vehicle maker. AM General President and CEO Andy Hove will continue to lead the company, and KPS Partner Jay Bernstein said the firm would continue to build on the ubiquitous Humvee, leveraging the company's “research, technology, innovation and new product development, as well as its heritage and iconic brand name.” The Humvee appears to have some growth ahead. For one, U.S. Army budget documents call for $1.5 billion through 2025 to pay for modernization of its fleet of High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles and their up-armored variant. That can include replacing major components, applying new technologies or replacing vehicles entirely. After the Army reaches its procurement objective for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, made by Oshkosh, it will have an enduring requirement for 54,800 Humvees. Otherwise, AM General ― which has advertised both its Brutus 155mm and Hawkeye 105mm mobile howitzers ― is expected to participate in the Army's mobile howitzer shoot-off evaluation at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, next year. Meanwhile, the Army is expected to complete a new tactical wheeled vehicle strategy in fiscal 2021, which has thus far received congressional support, per the House and Senate versions of the annual defense policy bill. Hove, who has said KPS will continue to execute AM General's existing strategy, spoke with Defense News on Aug. 6. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. Private equity firm KPS Capital Partners is in the process of acquiring AM General. At this preliminary stage, what would you say are KPS' plans and vision for the company? I think [KPS partner] Jay Bernstein represented it in his quote in the announcement that they feel really good about the capabilities of AM General and the strategy we've been executing. We've discussed with them where we can go. They're confident in our business and the growth prospects of AM General. They feel good about and stand behind our strategy, and we're going to work together with them. Will the company focus more on the Humvee, or do you see it becoming more flexible? What is the future for the Humvee? Who are its customers these days? To say we're only focused on the Humvee today would not be a correct premise. We've made investments across the board, in base automotive systems, and then automotive systems that have a particular special use. Our core focus is in solving very complex mobility challenges for customers. So the Humvee has a great future. I would offer that you turn to not what I say about what the Army will do but what the Army says they're going to do on the Humvee fleet, which is to steadily and systematically manage a very large fleet by systematic replacement of that fleet and recapitalization of that fleet going forward. They've been buying new-built Humvees to replace old Humvees over the last four years at a pretty heavy clip and have announced their intention to continue to do that going forward. We're obviously going to focus on the Humvee because there's significant demand. It is today the world's leading military 4x4 in its class, and we build more of them than any other military vehicle manufacturer in the world, and especially more than anybody in our weight class. That won't be the only thing we invest in. You can see our investments in the Hawkeye, which brings game-changing breakthrough technology [in relation to] how artillery systems are moved around and employed on the battlefield, together with a whole other range of implementing technologies such as autonomous navigation, off-board power and those kind of things. The U.S. Defense Department is an important customer, but a considerable portion of our businesses is global business, so we take a global view of how we solve mobility challenges for our customers around the globe. The Army recently issued a request for information about replacing heavy trucks. Is that a potential opportunity? We certainly feel like we have something to offer, a range of things to offer there, and that RFI's only been out for a couple of weeks. We'll will certainly take a closer look at that. We're also taking a look at the JLTV competition they announced back in February. Defense News recently characterized AM General as “largely stagnant” since losing the competition for the JLTV in 2015 to Oshkosh. Do you want to push back at all to talk about AM General's time under McAndrew & Forbes? The JLTV decision was 2015, and the four years since the announcement on the JLTV competition we've built more military vehicles than Oshkosh or any other military vehicle manufacturer by a long shot, and sold them to more customers around the globe than anyone else. I think that's far from being stagnant. There are a lot of adjectives you can apply to the company. “Stagnant” would not be the one I would apply. Private equity firms will typically set up companies they buy for faster growth, and then potentially that'll lead to a future sale. Do you think that's something that might happen here, and what do you predict? Is there any indication of time horizons for KPS? KPS has made a lot of smart investments, they have a pattern, but they're not going to be pigeonholed into a particular time frame for a next-step strategy. https://www.defensenews.com/interviews/2020/08/13/am-general-ceo-on-acquisition-by-a-private-equity-firm/