MTVR Armor Protection Kit [APK] Marine Armor System (MAS)
On September 7, 2004 Oshkosh Truck Corp., Oshkosh, Wis., was awarded an estimated $204,000,000 firm-fixed-price delivery order under previously awarded contract (M67854-04-D-5016) for production, delivery and installation of 920 of ECP-58 MTVR Armor Kits to be installed on the Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) Standard Cargo vehicles. Work for the armor hardware will be performed by Plasan Sasa in Israel (75 percent) and the raw material hardware will come from various steel manufacturers throughout the United States (25 percent). Work was expected to be completed in December 2005. This contract was not competitively procured, Oshkosh Truck Corp. is the sole manufacturer of the MTVR family of vehicles. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity.
The crew cab and/or cargo body perimeter armor were designed for the MTVR. The perimeter armor will withstand multiple (up to 3 rounds within one square foot) 7.62x39 M80 ball rounds fired from a one-meter standoff (threshold) with a 7.62 x 39 Armor Piercing (AP) rounds fired from a one hundred-meter offset (objective). The perimeter armor will withstand all fragmentation smaller than 1 inch from an Improvised Explosive Devise (IED) detonated at 4 meters with a ¼ pound of C4 (objective). The mine protection kit shall protect the crew and/or cargo space occupants from blast, fragments, and injurious acceleration effects of blast mines up to the equivalent of 12 pounds of composition B (threshold), 16 pounds of composition B (objective). The bottom fragmentation protection shall be equivalent to 0.5 inches of aluminum armor (threshold), rolled homogeneous armor (objective), in order to protect the crew from grenades, bomblets, and mortar rounds used as mines. Overhead protection for the crew compartment must stop 90% of artillery fragments (U.S. 155mm high energy (HE) round, M107 (Composition B)) fired from any elevation or azimuth and detonated 60 meters from the vehicle, with a 90% confidence level.
In a large warehouse outside of Kuwait City civilian contractors from more than 25 countries around the world work in two, 12-hour shifts seven days a week. They are working around the clock in temperatures reaching 120 degrees to ensure U.S. Marines are protected from improvised explosive devices and small-arms fire during convoy operations by installing new panels, dubbed up-armor, to the gunner's turret, undercarriage and sides of their vehicles. Beginning 16 July 2004, more than 60 Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement seven-ton trucks and humvees from the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit have been fitted with the new armor plates. The up-armor project began in February when Marine commanders wanted 100 percent side protection on their vehicles. Headquarters Marine Corps sent a request to Logistics Command to come up with a design for the new armor. Within 28 days of the request, the new up-armor had been prototyped, tested, approved and installed on vehicles headed to Iraq from the I Marine Expeditionary Force.
Armor Holdings, Inc. a leading manufacturer and distributor of security products and vehicle armor systems, announced 05 October 2004 that it had received a contract award from Oshkosh Truck Company for approximately $115 million to support the US Marine Corps Medium Tactical Truck Vehicle Replacement program (MTVR). Oshkosh Truck Company has contracted with Armor Holdings' Aerospace and Defense Group to provide armor component systems integration, program management, and systems engineering support.
The Company estimates that 2004 revenue resulting from the MTVR program will be minimal and thus does not anticipate adjusting 2004 guidance as a result of this award. The Company noted that this contract is representative of a developing trend within its business toward armoring an ever-broadening range of vehicle platforms. Armor Holdings now produces armoring solutions for a total of seven different vehicle platforms, including light, medium, and heavy tactical trucks.
Robert Schiller, President and Chief Operating Officer of Armor Holdings, Inc., said, "We are pleased to work closely with Oshkosh Truck and to support another important force protection program for the Marines. This particular opportunity also builds on our strong relationship with Israeli-based Plasan Sasa. We believe that this program highlights the growing acceptance of the new realities of major conflict. We believe that increasingly, every soldier, regardless of their occupational specialty or zone of deployment, can come under fire, and has a real and pressing need for defensive equipment. We are pleased to provide expertise in ballistics and blast protection as well as broad experience on a number of platforms, making us a supplier of choice for the Department of Defense and the industry's vehicle producers."
Armor Holdings in turn subcontracted to its Israeli based partner, Plasan Sasa, for production of 796 MTVR armor kits to be delivered to the USMC, primarily in 2005. On 12 October 2004 Plasan Sasa, leading developers and manufacturers of combat proven ballistic protection products, announced that it has won a new US Department of Defense contract worth over $100 million as a subcontractor for Armor Holdings Inc. The contract calls for Plasan to mount its advanced Armor Protection Kit (APK) on 920 Oshkosh Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) - to be fully deployed by the US Marines by 2005. This contract placed Plasan among the small number of companies worldwide that work with the US Navy in the field of add-on armor for lightweight military vehicles and trucks.
Plasan's solution for both the armor protection itself and the design of the rear troop carrier complied with the highest technological demands stipulated by the US Navy. Engineered from composite materials, Plasan's battle-proven armor solution is tailored to meet the multiple challenges of today's combat scenarios - traditional battlefields, urban warfare and low intensity conflicts (LIC). The armor was chosen for the high level of all-round protection it provides to both vehicle and crew against Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), mines and other threats. In addition, Plasan's highly cost-effective APK allows easy and swift assembly and disassembly by crews in the field, according to changing mission specifications. Its fully modular nature allows it to be easily transferred from one vehicle to another.
Plasan's Armor Protection Kit (APK) was chosen over those from competing contractors after extensive rigorous tests by the USMC, in order to ensure the troops have the most effective protection. The new contract follows on from Plasan's earlier successful cooperation with Armor Holdings Inc. to develop add-on armor for the M915 'Freightliner' truck. The project - proved Plasan's ability to create the most advanced tailor-made solutions specially designed against customer's specific requirements.
"This contract demonstrates Plasan Sasa's leadership in providing protection to patrol vehicles, trucks or other lightweight platforms against IEDs, landmines and various terrorist and insurgent threats. Until a few years ago, the vulnerability of trucks was the soft underbelly of any military force finding itself deployed in the modern battlefield environments. From our experience with the Israeli Defense Forces in Lebanon, we've developed the capability to immediately supply battle-proven armor solutions either 'off-the-shelf' or fully tailored to specific customer needs," said Plasan's CEO, Dan Ziv.
Plasan Sasa is a preferred supplier to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and an approved supplier to Ministries of Defense around the world. The focus of its core business is the development, manufacture and assembly of Add-On Armor Protection Kits [APK's] for lightweight military tactical track and wheeled vehicles [APCs/Trucks], fixed and rotary wing aircraft, naval platforms and commercial vehicles, as well as personnel protection armor.
About 10 November 2004, the Maintenance Center received direction from Marine Corps Systems Command, through Logistics Command, to receive, prepare and ship protective armor kits to II Marine Expeditionary Unit, at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, NC, prior to its scheduled deployment. Upon receiving the raw material from the vendor, Maintenance Center personnel from just about every cost work center joined forces to tackle this job.
Armor plates, pre-cut 3/8-inch metal, were to be blasted, painted and bent to fit the specific vehicles they were tasked to prepare the kits for. Kits had to be produced for the Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR), both doors and underbody, and for the 5-ton trucks, doors and underbody. The only thing they had to do other than prepare the kits was manufacture the brackets and hardware that are needed to mount the plates. Those we had to do in-house in just a few days.
The 5-ton truck kits were delivered to Camp Lejeune by 03 December 2004 and the MTVR kits were there by 06 December 2004. This was just the first salvo, with more requirements expected to come in at a later date. There is the possibility of Maintenance Center Barstow being tasked with designing and producing kits for the P-19 Fire truck as well as producing kits for some of the ambulances, which are now being tested in the Nevada desert.
Maintenance Center Albany will be concentrating more on producing Marine Armor Kits for the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), which contain under armor, new style doors, roof armor, rear armor and ballistic windshields. This is the main reason MCB was given the task of producing the MTVR and 5-ton truck kits; to help take some of the pressure off Albany and allow them to fully concentrate on the hummer kits.
