Officials from the Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., announced Wednesday a $988 million contract with Exelis (NYSE: XLS) in Fort Wayne, Ind.; General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) C4 Systems in Scottsdale, Arizona; Thales Defense & Security Inc. in Clarksburg, Maryland; and Harris Corp. (NYSE:HRS) RF Communications segment in Rochester, New York, for the SRW Appliqué Radio Systems program.
The awarding of W Appliqué Radio Systems was delayed by several months and was expected last summer.
This initiative will add the Joint Tactical Radio Systems (JTRS) program’s Soldier Radio Waveform (SRW) software application to JTRS vehicle-mounted radio systems and transform the VRC-92 into a single-channel, vehicle-mounted software-defined radio for Army battlegroups brigade.
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Army personnel will purchase SRW Appliqué Radio Systems in separate orders from the four companies over the next five years, with five one-year options. Army officials say they plan to buy about 5,000 SRW Appliqué Radio Systems over the next 10 years.
This upgrade will add a data transmission module to the SINCGARS radio to enable updated VRC-92 communications systems to exchange voice and data between infantrymen using the JTRS Rifleman Radio and higher-level commands on Army tactical networks.
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Army leaders intend the SRW Appliqué Radio Systems program to be an interim tactical communications solution until the dual-channel, vehicle-mounted component of the JTRS Handheld, Manpack, Small Form Fit (HMS) family of radios is ready for deployment to deployed forces.
The SRW Appliqué Radio Systems program is considered a low-cost alternative to the hand-held radio. Each SRW Appliqué is expected to cost the Army about $20,000, compared to $78,000 for a dual-channel digital backpack, officials say.
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Funding and the number of radios to be provided by each of the four SRW Appliqué Radio Systems contractors will be determined with each order, and the program should be completed by April 2024.
For more information, contact Exelis online at www.exelisinc.com; General Dynamics C4 Systems c www.gdc4s.com; Harris RF Communications at http://rf.harris.com; Thales Defense & Security at www.thalescomminc.com; or the Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground www.acc.army.mil/contractingcenters/acc-apg.
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