May 7, 2020 | International, C4ISR
Since the coronavirus pandemic began, the Defense Department has seen a small increase in predatory foreign investment in U.S. companies, such as small drone manufacturers, the Pentagon's head of industrial policy said Wednesday.
“In general terms, there has been of an uptick, but it's always been pretty high,” Jennifer Santos, deputy assistant secretary of defense for industrial policy, said Wednesday during the C4ISRNET Conference.
The Pentagon has become increasingly concerned about what it calls “adversarial capital” — a tactic whereby foreign nations, particularly China, make investments into U.S. technology startups that are part of the defense market. Once those countries make their investments, they could own or have access to unique American technologies, while the Pentagon loses its own access due to security considerations.
With the U.S. economy increasingly fragile due to COVID-19, the Defense Department must be vigilant about potential risk to American companies, Santos said. “We simply cannot afford during this period of economic uncertainty the loss of American know-how in critical tech.”
But Santos stopped short of saying the uptick in predatory foreign investment was a direct result of the pandemic, instead noting that the Defense Department recently expanded its existing tools to monitor adversarial capital.
One tool, known as the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, allows the government to block a foreign investment attempt on national security grounds. The jurisdiction of that tool increased in February, so the Defense Department has seen a boost in the number of cases it is tracking, Santos said.
“Twenty percent of our [gross domestic product] is foreign direct investment, which is fantastic. But there's some areas where there are threats associated with some of that capital, and we want to protect those industry partners,” she said.
Over the past eight weeks, the Pentagon hosted 25 teleconferences with industry to help guide companies that might be experiencing financial distress caused by COVID-19. Some of that outreach, such as a webinar held last week, centered around avoiding adversarial capital, Santos said.
While her comments on adversarial capital did not center specifically on the small drone industry, she noted that the pandemic has made supply chain vulnerabilities in that sector more apparent to the department.
“The market for UAS [unmanned aerial systems] in the United States is dominated primarily by foreign companies, especially Chinese companies,” she said, adding that Chinese firms hold 97 percent of the small UAS market, with about 75 percent of sales in the U.S. commercial market coming from Chinese drone maker DJI.
“U.S. firms have struggled to compete in this drone area,” she said. "Even commercial drones manufactured in the United States often use components made in China. We don't know what the exact effects of COVID will be on this small UAS sector, but I know one thing: We will emerge from this stronger.”
Brent Ingraham, the Pentagon's unmanned systems technical director, pointed to the American Drone Security Act currently under proposal by Congress. If passed, the legislation would apply the same security restrictions on UAS used by the Defense Department to the rest of the federal government, which would secure industrial opportunities for U.S. vendors that have a trusted supply chain, he said.
As the Defense Department looks to expand its base of small UAS manufacturers, one of the military's legacy providers offered a word of caution.
"We as a community are all in favor in faster, cheaper, better, but we need to have an exercise in caution when you do that,” said Gorik Hossepian, AeroVironment's vice president of UAS product line management. “Our past is full of examples of when we do those kinds of things, we tend to sacrifice one versus the other. We need to not lose sight that what we need is a balance.”
"At the end of the day, the war fighter at the edge of the battlefield ... needs to have a product that is trusted,” he said. “Members of some of our community, to some extent, have that as some of our DNA — the DNA of working with the end user to solve those problems.”
July 5, 2023 | International, Other Defence
Up to half of the 100 billion euro ($109 billion) special fund set up to modernize the German military will likely go to U.S. defence companies, a leading tank gear box maker said, accusing Berlin of lacking a strategy for its defence industry.
October 5, 2018 | International, Land
By David Vergun, Army News Service FORT BELVOIR, Va. -- The Army is looking for an improved ghillie suit to replace the flame-resistant, camouflage suit now worn by snipers to keep them from being seen by the enemy. The current ghillie suits are bulky, somewhat uncomfortable and hot in warm weather, said Debbie Williams, a systems acquisition expert with Program Executive Office Soldier, Product Manager Soldier Clothing and Individual Equipment. The current suit is known as the Flame Resistant Ghillie System, or FRGS. The replacement the Army is looking for will be called the Improved Ghillie System, or IGS, Williams said. She added that although the term "flame resistant" is not in the new name, the IGS will still have flame-resistant properties. Soldiers will receive most of their protection from the base layer worn under the IGS, such as the Flame Resistant Combat Uniform, or FR ACU. The IGS will be a modular system, worn over the field uniform, she said. It will be modular in that it can be taken apart, with pieces added or subtracted as needed, such as sleeves, leggings, veil, cape and so on. Another change is that the IGS will not come with the accessory kit, like the one supplied with the FRGS, Williams said. It was found that Soldiers were not using a majority of the items in their accessory kit or preferred a different material. Williams said the cost of the IGS will be lower than the current $1,300 FRGS. Mary Armacost, a textile technologist with Product Manager Soldier Clothing and Individual Equipment, said the IGS will be made of lighter, more breathable material than the FRGS. Also, the material for the skeins that accompany the IGS will be stiffer than that of the FRGS, thereby making the IGS more effective at camouflaging the Soldier. A request for proposal for the IGS went out Aug. 28 and closed Sept. 24, she said. Vendors must each provide three samples. About 3,500 suits are expected to be produced under the contract for approximately 3,300 snipers in all three Army components, as well as Soldiers in U.S. Special Operations Command, Williams said. After the samples are obtained, lab and field testing will begin at various locations in November, she said. For example, the Army's Night Vision Laboratory will do full-spectrum testing. It will also use night vision goggles to see how well the suits remain hidden in darkened conditions. Daytime testing for visual camouflage effectiveness will take place as well, with sniper-qualified Soldiers at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, Williams said. Additionally, acoustic testing will be done by the Army Research Laboratory to determine how much noise the IGS produces in field conditions. ARL will also test the effectiveness of the fabric regarding tear resistance and fire retardant effectiveness, she added. Following all of this, a limited user evaluation should commence next spring using instructors from the Sniper School at Fort Benning, Georgia. https://www.army.mil/article/211933
June 10, 2020 | International, Naval
Rome June 9, 2020 - Leonardo has signed a twenty-year framework agreement with the Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organisation (DALO) which provides for logistics support and the possible future upgrade of the seventeen 76/62 Super Rapid Gun Mounts which are in-service on the Danish Navy's Iver Huitfeldt Class Frigates, Thetis Class Inspection Ships and Knud Rasmussen Class Inspection Ships. The agreement is worth up to a total value of 70 million Euros and can be extended in line with the needs of DALO and future budgets. The 76/62 Super Rapid (SR) Gun Mount is a lightweight, rapid-fire naval gun which delivers performance and flexibility in all air defence and anti-surface roles, particularly in an anti-missile role. The 76/62 SR is suitable for installation on ships of any type and class, including small naval units. The scope of the agreement between Leonardo and DALO ranges from basic support supplies, such as spare parts, tools and technical logistics services, up to gun upgrades and the provision of brand new 76/62 SR guns in their most up-to-date configurations. The first purchase orders are expected to be for materials necessary to maintain operational guns and for a plan to replace all original consoles with a new digital version. The deal highlights Leonardo's ability to ensure customers to perform their mission, by offering logistics solutions which maximise the value and utility of its products over time. It consolidates the Company's partnership with DALO, one of the most important customers in the naval defence systems sector, a relationship which formed in the 1980s and is projected to last long into the future. View source version on Leonardo: https://www.leonardocompany.com/en/press-release-detail/-/detail/09-06-2020-leonardo-signs-a-framework-agreement-for-the-maintenance-of-defence-systems-in-service-with-the-danish-navy