3 novembre 2020 | International, Terrestre
By: Andrew Chuter
LONDON – Britain's Ministry of Defence has taken back management control of its nuclear weapons facilities from an industry-led consortium that has been running the operation for two decades.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement to parliament that the Atomic Weapons Establishment will become wholly owned by the MoD, with the new arrangement expected to be in place by June 2021.
“Under the revised arrangements, AWE plc will become an arms-length body wholly owned by the MoD. It will continue to be managed by a world-leading team and a new board will be appointed by the MoD,” he told lawmakers.
Since 1999 AWE has been managed and operated by a Lockheed Martin-led consortium, which also includes Jacobs Engineering and Serco, in a deal which had been expected to run until 2025.
The arrangement, won in competition, followed several years of commercial management by Hunting-BRAE.
The establishment, based at Aldermaston in southern England, is at the core of British activities toward developing, producing and disassembling nuclear warheads for the Royal Navy's fleet of Trident missile-armed submarines.
In February the MoD committed itself to development of a new nuclear warhead to allow the Navy to field an effective deterrent for deployment on the new fleet of Dreadnought-class submarines due to start replacing the existing boats early in the next decade.
The MoD owns the AWE sites and facilities. The day-to-day management, operations and the maintenance of Britain's nuclear stockpile are the responsibility of the consortium, which employs the workforce and maintains the nuclear site operating licenses.
Wallace said the MoD has been looking at a successor arrangement for the current deal since July last year.
“Although the existing arrangements have brought stability to the organization the MoD has concluded that AWE will revert to a direct government ownership model,” said the defence secretary in his statement to parliament.
The MoD appears to have left the door open to some degree of commercial involvement in AWE.
In his statement Wallace said the new business model will see AWE “continue to draw on private sector specialist support to strengthen capability as well as playing a key role in managing capital projects and contracts.”
In a separate statement the defense ministry said removal of the current commercial arrangements would "enhance the MoD's agility in the future management of the UK's nuclear deterrent, whilst also delivering on core MoD objectives and value for money to the taxpayer.
“The decision was taken in order to simplify and further strengthen the relationship between AWE and the MoD,” the statement said.
AWE Management Limited, the name of the company formed by the consortium to manage and operate the nuclear facilities, only appointed a new chief executive, Alison Atkinson, in May.
An industry competition for what is thought to be a three-year transformation program at AWE is already in its early stages.
An industry executive who asked not to be named said the MoD had invoked what is known as a “termination of convenience” clause in the contract to prematurely end the deal with the consortium.
“It was not performance related. Lockheed Martin and its partners could be due compensation,” said the executive.
AWE has not been without its problems though, and, along with the MoD, most recently attracted criticism from the National Audit Office, the government financial watchdog, for its handling of a program known as Mensa to build a facility to assemble and disassemble nuclear weapons.
Progress on Mensa has quickened recently but the program is expected to be over six years late and 146 percent over budget, according to an NAO report published in the summer.
In a statement, a Lockheed Martin spokesman said the company remains “fully committed to the delivery of the UK's continuous at-sea deterrent. We'll continue to support the UK government, as the Atomic Weapons Establishment transitions to a new operating model and delivers current and future requirements.”
21 septembre 2023 | International, Terrestre, Sécurité
The Pentagon is at an important juncture as it thinks creatively and ambitiously on how to leverage this critical new technology.
5 septembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
Leonardo, through its industrial pillar in the Polish helicopter sector PZL-Świdnik, and the Polish Armaments Group, jointly with the Polish aviation industry and R&D centers, is presenting a next-generation multirole military helicopter concept based on a legacy W-3 Sokół platform at MSPO 2019. The new concept comprises state-of-the-art technologies offered by the Polish aviation industry. In the future this solution could meet the requirements of the Polish Armed Forces for a new generation of battlefield support helicopters. The collaborative project oversees a major modification of the W-3 platform which is the basis of the helicopter fleet of the Polish Armed Forces. Only the latest and already tested technologies available on the market have been used for the new concept, without compromising the Polish military needs through the guarantee of shorter delivery times, high level of reliability and savings in terms of the acquisition and operating costs. The helicopter will be equipped with new blades and main rotor and a fully digital avionics system, covering a glass cockpit, flight management system (FMS), synthetic vision system (SVS), digital maps and terrain avoidance warning system (TAWS), as well as a four-axis digital autopilot, new communication system, an engine FADEC and health & usage monitoring system (HUMS). All of this, combined with mission equipment and additional 200 kg of useful load (owing to an increase from 6,400 kg to 6,600 kg MTOW) will offer remarkable improvement in terms of performance and the operational capability of the helicopter. On display at MSPO 2019 there will be a mock-up of the new generation W-3 concept helicopter's cockpit. This concept further highlights the stringent global standard capabilities of the Polish aviation industry and how it can meet the battlefield demands of the Polish Armed Forces as well as the mission needs of the Polish military end-users. The type will meet latest requirements of NATO countries to remain in service for another 30 years and overcome a design generation gap between previous and latest generation systems. The venture will also see a significant technology transfer from Leonardo to PZL-Świdnik which, in turn, will enable the Polish aviation industry to further consolidate its growth domestically. Gian Piero Cutillo, Leonardo Helicopters' MD, said: “A key significance in the development of the new generation W-3 concept helicopter is through the transfer of technology with a view to guarantee to clients the operational autonomy and the broadest possible involvement of Polish industry. Particularly, the major role of our long-term partner, i.e. the Polish Armaments Group and companies belonging to it, which will be involved to a high degree in all phases of the project starting with the design, through to development, and the production which will support the helicopter into the future.” Sebastian Chwałek, vice president of the Polish Armaments Group, said, “Companies of our group bring into the modernization project several state-of-art solutions and competencies, including among others weapon systems equipped with guided and unguided missiles and firearms. Integration of those solutions on W-3 helicopter will allow this rotorcraft to support effectively soldiers in deployment of the tasks set on them, at the same time guaranteeing to the Armed Forces permanent access to munitions that can be used also by other armies of the NATO.” The next generation W-3 helicopter will provide the Polish Armed Forces with advanced battlefield support capabilities through a wide range of mission equipment, covering fully integrated armaments system (air-to-air missiles, anti-tank missiles, 70mm rocket pods, cannon pods (12.7/20 mm), machine gun installed in a cabin) and an integrated defensive aids system, an electro optical surveillance system, NVG compatibility and head up display. The helicopter will be able to perform a wide range of missions, including troop transport, special forces insertion/extraction, CSAR, intelligence, surveillance and armed reconnaissance, and medevac/casevac. https://www.verticalmag.com/press-releases/leonardo-and-the-polish-armaments-group-unveil-next-gen-w-3-helicopter-concept/
23 septembre 2020 | International, Naval, C4ISR
Seapower Staff WASHINGTON, D.C. – Lockheed Martin, tapped as one of six companies to provide a study for a proven, integrated and capable payload ship, able to patrol for extended durations, as part of the U.S. Navy's Large Unmanned Surface Vessel (LUSV) competition, is partnering with Portland, Oregon-based Vigor Works LLC as the team's shipbuilder. As prime contractor, Lockheed Martin will manage the program, deliver platform integration, systems engineering, combat management, automation and cyber solutions, Lockheed Martin said in a Sept. 17 release. “The Lockheed Martin team brings together nearly 200 years of combined experience in shipbuilding, integration, automation and autonomy,” said Joe DePietro, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager of Small Combatants and Ship Systems. “Our team is energized by and focused on delivering the Navy what they've asked for – a design for an affordable, low-risk ship capable of bringing the Navy's Distributed Maritime Operations (DMO) vision to life.” The Lockheed Martin team's design uses a proven commercial ship that will be augmented with automation, autonomy and cybersecurity elements to house a payload. The design leverages Lockheed Martin's autonomy and automation experience, including its platform-agnostic Sikorsky MATRIX technology that's been used to fly a helicopter from a wireless tablet, and its AXIS control technology, used on more than half of U.S. Navy surface ships to manage engineering and machinery controls. Under the $7 million contract, Lockheed Martin will deliver the study within 12 months in advance of the next phase of the competition – the Navy's LUSV Detailed Design & Construction competition. “We are honored to be part of the Lockheed Martin team and to leverage our extensive fabrication expertise, including previously building 16 USVs of various designs and sizes,” said Richard McCreary, Vigor vice president, business development. “We are ready to deliver a concept design that will help the Navy deploy a safe, efficient and affordable LUSV fleet for the future.” The Navy's vision for USVs will enable the fleet to fight as a distributed, networked and more lethal force. USVs will provide extended presence across the globe with reduced risk to sailors and increased obstacles and complications for adversaries. https://seapowermagazine.org/lockheed-martin-teams-with-vigor-for-navys-lusv-study/