LONDON, 12 June 2009. Northrop Grumman Corp. won a contract to provide technical support services for the integrated platform management systems (IPMS) installed in the Royal Navy's new Type 45 destroyers.

The contract was awarded to Northrop Grumman's Sperry Marine business unit by BVT Surface Fleet Ltd, the prime contractor for the Type 45 program. Sperry Marine is the selected IPMS supplier for the Type 45 ships, the first of which, HMS Daring, joined the Royal Navy surface fleet in December.

Under the new support contract, valued at 2.2 million pounds Sterling, Sperry Marine will establish a test and technical support facility at its U.K. engineering center in New Malden that will include a complete shore-based IPMS reference set.

Northrop Grumman Sperry Marine also provides ongoing maintenance, repair, spares management, upgrades, and training under an interim support contract for the IPMS aboard HMS Daring.

The IPMS provides monitoring, alarm management and control for the ship's main engines, auxiliaries and other on-board systems, as well as damage control functions, through networked command-and-control workstations at strategic locations around the ship. The open-architecture design also allows the gathering of critical data from the combat and communication systems to be captured and displayed on the IPMS workstations.

"This highly integrated network is designed to provide accurate and consistent data collection and display across all the functional boundaries of the ship, a capability that is vital to the safe and efficient operation of a modern warship," said J. Nolasco DaCunha, vice president of Northrop Grumman Sperry Marine.

"We are pleased to be the chosen supplier of this mission-critical system for the high-profile Type 45 programme," said Sir Nigel Essenhigh, chairman of Northrop Grumman UK. "We are rapidly expanding our portfolio of vital products, systems and services for the new generation of Royal Navy ships, including the Astute-class submarines and Queen Elizabeth-class (CVF) aircraft carriers."

The six Type 45 anti-air warfare destroyers are being deployed by the Royal Navy to replace the aging Type 42 ships. HMS Daring is undergoing final sea trials.