Officials of the Marine Corps Systems Command at Quantico Marine Base, Va., are awarding Kollsman a five-year contract to build low-rate initial production and full-rate production versions of the Common Laser Range Finder-Integrated Capability (CLRF-IC). Kollsman is a wholly owned subsidiary of Elbit Systems Ltd. in Haifa, Israel.
The handheld CLRF-IC handheld laser rangefinder systems are to help deployed Marines detect, identify, and pinpoint targets during the day, at night, and in bad weather.
For this contract Kollsman prevails over three other electro-optics companies competing for the CLRF-IC production contract. In late 2012 the Marine Corps awarded CLRF-IC development contracts Kollsman, as well as to the Raytheon Co. EO Innovations business unit in Richardson, Texas; Jenoptik Defense Inc. in Jupiter, Fla.; and BAE Systems OASYS in Manchester, N.H.
To develop initial CLRF-IC prototypes to compete for the final production contract, Kollsman won a $4.3 million contract; Raytheon won a $3.3 million contract; Jenoptik won a $1.3 million contract; and BAE Systems OASYS won a $2.1 million contract.
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Now Kollsman goes on to the CLRF-IC production phase. The small handheld system will weigh no more than three pounds -- light enough for one Marie infantryman to carry -- and will provide improved integrated night-vision capability, internal selective availability anti-spoofing module (SAASM) GPS, and non-magnetic azimuth capability.
The CLRF IC system will replace the Marine Corps's currently fielded CLRF suite of equipment. The new CLRF IC system will provide reduced weight, enhanced precision, improved night-vision capability, and improved non-magnetic azimuth capability by incorporating components of the CLRF suite into one system.
The CLRF IC will be a handheld lightweight man-portable GPS target location device to assist the operator in determining the location of a target or other object of interest by measuring the distance, direction, and vertical angle from the operator to the object. The CLRF IC system also can export these measurement in digital format to external digital devices for further processing.
The CLRF IC from Kollsman also will be able to operate in the daytime and at night, as well as in the range of environments in which the Marines deploy with laser spot imaging of several wavelengths, Marine Corps officials say.
On this contract Kollsman will do the work in Merrimack, N.H., and should be finished by March 2020. For more information contact Kollsman online at www.kollsman.com, or Marine Corps Systems Command at www.marcorsyscom.marines.mil.
