EFW acquires helmet-mounted display product line from Honeywell
Leaders of EFW Inc., a defense electronics company in Fort Worth, Texas, bought the military helmet display and tracker products line of Honeywell International Inc. of Morristown, N.J. EFW is a wholly owned subsidiary of Elbit Systems Ltd. in Haifa, Israel. EFW acquired the assets of Honeywell's Display and Orientation Products business for approximately $14 million, the companies announced. EFW is acquiring the military helmet display and tracker products activities performed by Honeywell at facilities in Minnesota and Georgia, primarily for attack helicopters of the U.S. Army and related customers. This acquisition complements Elbit Systems' capabilities in helmet-mounted systems for fighter aircraft, Elbit officials say. For more information contact EFW Inc. by phone at 817-234-6600, by fax at 817-234-6768, by post at 4700 Marine Creek Parkway, P.O. Box 136969, Fort Worth, Texas 76136-6969, by e-mail at [email protected], or on the World Wide Web at http://www.efw.com/.
Power IC market growing annually by 18 percent
Demand for power supply and power management integrated circuits (ICs) will grow at an average annual rate of more than 18 percent over the next five years, according to analysts at Venture Development Corp. (VDC) in Natick, Mass. 2000 sales of power supply and power management ICs represent a market of more than $5.2 billion, VDC experts say. The company's annual survey of power devices covers voltage regulator and controller ICs for switching and linear applications, PFC pre-regulator ICs, as well as battery charging, protection, and fuel gauge ICs. VDC's study indicates the top-ranked power management IC vendors are Texas Instruments, National Semiconductor, ON Semiconductor, Linear Technology, Fairchild, and Maxim. For more information contact VDC by phone at 508-653-9000, by fax at 508-653-9836, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.vdc-corp.com/. — J.K.
Northrop Grumman acquires Litton Industries
Northrop Grumman Corp. will acquire Litton Industries Inc. under terms of a December deal that will create a top-tier defense company with special expertise in systems integration, electronics, and information technology, officials of the two companies say. Northrop Grumman leaders will operate Litton as a wholly owned subsidiary. The $5.1 billion deal calls for Northrop Grumman of Los Angeles to buy all of the outstanding shares of Litton for $80 per common share and $35 per Series B preferred share, officials say. The Northrop Grumman and Litton boards of directors unanimously approved the transaction. Litton, of Woodland Hills, Calif., supplies advanced electronics and non-nuclear surface warships. The company reported sales of $5.6 billion and net income of $218 million for the 2000 fiscal year. Ronald Sugar, Litton's president and chief operating officer, will become a Northrop Grumman corporate vice president, and president and chief executive officer of the new Litton subsidiary. Sugar also will join the Northrop Grumman board of directors. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2001. — J.K.
Air Force moves ahead on Sidewinder missile production
U.S. Air Force leaders are taking another step toward deploying the latest-generation air-to-air missile, known as the AIM-9X Sidewinder. The Air Force awarded Raytheon Co. of Tucson, Ariz., a $43 million contract for low rate initial production (LRIP) of the AIM-9X. The contract calls for 103 operational missiles and 39 training missiles. AIM-9X is the next generation of the combat-proven Sidewinder series missiles that have provided dogfight superiority for more than 45 years. It incorporates a high off-boresight staring infrared focal plane array seeker as well as thrust vector control for extreme agility in all aerial combat environments, Raytheon officials say. The U.S. Navy and Air Force will deploy the AIM-9X on the F/A-18E/F jet fighter-bomber, as well as on the F-16 and F-22 jet fighters. AIM-9X development will continue through the end of 2002. The U.S. Department of Defense is to buy 10,097 missiles — 5,097 for the Air Force and 5,000 for the Navy — during an 18-year production run. — J.K.
Boeing to supply IR suppression equipment for C-130 aircraft
Leaders of the U.S. Special Operations Command are awarding Boeing a $50 million contract to develop and produce engine infrared suppression systems, or EIRS, for special operations C-130 aircraft. Work will be at the Boeing Military Aerospace Support in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., and at Allison Advance Development Co. of Indianapolis, and Crestview Aerospace Corp. in Crestview, Fla. Installation of the EIRS systems will by done by Boeing field teams at Special Operations Command C-130 bases around the world. Boeing performs fast-response modifications and logistics support for the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command fleet of C-130 aircraft, including the Boeing-developed AC-130U gunship. The company also has performed numerous other C-130 modernization initiatives, including the tanker/rescue modification program and sensor installation for the U.S. Coast Guard. — J.K.
Lockheed Martin to supply C-130J aircraft simulators to U.S. Air Force
U.S. Air Force officials are set to receive C-130J aircraft flight simulators from systems integrator Lockheed Martin Astronautics Co. of Marietta, Ga. Air Force leaders awarded Lockheed Martin a $29 million contract option to supply simulators at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark., as well as for training site activation at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. The contract calls for Lockheed Martin experts to deliver a C-130J avionics system management trainer to Little Rock in November 2003, and a C-130J weapon system trainer to that base in February 2004. The C-130J is the latest version of the venerable Lockheed Martin C-130 four-engine turboprop aircraft that Air Force leaders use for a wide variety of missions ranging from cargo delivery to special operations and covert reconnaissance missions. — J.K.
Alphi offers MIL-STD-1553B controller
Leaders of Alphi Technology Corp. of Tempe, Ariz., are offering MIL-STD-1553B controllers for military, industrial, and commercial applications. The PMC-1553 is a single-wide PCI mezzanine card based on the UTMC Summit chip. The board has automatic execution of message transfers, interrupt handling, and generation of status information. Time tagging and message history are available in remote terminal mode. for more information contact Alphi Technology by phone at 602-838-2428, by fax at 602-838-4477, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.alphitech.com/. — J.K.
Air Force receives radar upgrades on F-15C combat jets
U.S. Air Force leaders are receiving the last three of 18 F-15C jet fighters refitted with the Raytheon APG-63(v)2 active electronically scanned array radar — better known as AESA. The AESA system replaces the traditional mechanically scanning radar dish with a stationary panel covered with an array of hundreds of small transmitter-receiver modules. Unlike a radar dish, these modules have more combined power and can perform different detection, tracking, communication and jamming functions in multiple directions simultaneously, Boeing officials say. "The AESA radar allows the pilot to detect, track, and destroy multiple enemy aircraft at significantly longer ranges," says Chris Finnerty, the F-15 AESA program manager at the Boeing Phantom Works unit in St Louis, which builds the F-15. The AESA eliminates the hydraulic and electrical systems associated with mechanically operated radars to enhance its reliability and maintainability. — J.K.
Radstone unveils rugged memory card drive
Designers at Radstone Technology in Towcester, England, are offering what they call the Rugged Memory Card Drive — or the RMCD — an environmentally sealed drive for military vehicles that supports as many as two PC card/PCMCIA V2.1 slots. Designers typically will locate the RMCD in the vehicle's crew area with the controlling host computer in a remote equipment bay, Radstone officials say. Systems integrators connect to the host computer with a conventional SCSI-2 bus, which enables them to use standard SCSI drivers. Separate SCSI input and output connectors enable integrators to connect several RMCDs in series. Both PC card slots support type II rugged metal extended-temperature ATA Flash memory cards. Typical applications include the loading of map or mission data, diagnostic or operational data logging, test and maintenance support, as well as software upgrades, Radstone officials say. For more information contact the Radstone office in Montvale, N.J., by phone at 800-368-2738, by fax at 201-391-2800, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.radstone.com/. — J.K.
Navy asks DRS to build additional Q-70 shipboard computers
Engineers from DRS Electronic Systems Inc. of Gaithersburg, Md., are building AN/UYQ-70 advanced display systems for the U.S. Navy under terms of a $38.5 million contract. The awards came from the company's industry teammate Lockheed Martin Tactical Systems in Eagan, Minn. DRS experts are building the workstations for U.S. Navy Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. Production of these commercial off-the-shelf (COTS)-based systems will be at the DRS Laurel Technologies unit in Johnstown, Pa. Engineers from the DRS Electronic Systems unit in Gaithersburg, Md., will upgrade internal ship communications and the horizontal display of navigation and integrated warfare information, company officials say. The AN/UYQ-70 workstations are being installed throughout the U.S. Navy's surface, subsurface, and air fleet, including its E-2C Hawkeye aircraft, the new Virginia-class attack submarines, and existing Los Angeles-class attack submarines. — J.K.
Navy offers information on past performance of defense contractors
U.S. Navy officials are launching an automated warehouse and retrieval system to access past performance report cards of U.S. Department of Defense contractors. A project of the Navy Electronic Acquisition Office, the application is called the DOD Past Performance Automated Information System — otherwise known as the PPAIS. It enables users to retrieve 8,600 report cards representing $300 billion in contracting actions, Navy officials say. The application, managed by the Naval Sea Logistics Center Detachment at Portsmouth, N.H., is available on the World Wide Web at http://dodppais.navy.mil/. — J.K.
Encapsulant protects delicate electronic sensors in military systems
Experts at Emerson & Cuming Specialty Polymers in Billerica, Mass., are offering their Stycast E 1410 A/B encapsulant to protect electronic sensors from temperature extremes in aerospace and industrial applications, as well as from fluids such as oil and water. This encapsulant is to protect stress-sensitive electronics and coil windings. It can survive thermal cycling from -40 to 175 degrees Celsius, For more information contact Emerson & Cuming by phone at 800-832-4929, by fax at 609-409-5699, by e-mail at [email protected], by post at One Matrix Drive, Monroe Township, N.J. 08831, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.emersoncuming.com/.— J.K.
Eaton to provide digital control for Army Multiple Launch Rocket System
Engineers at Eaton Corp. in Cleveland are designing a digitally controlled hydraulic system to improve the loading and launching response time of the U.S. Army Multiple Launch Rocket System, otherwise known as the MLRS. Eaton is doing the work under terms of a $30 million contract awarded Oct. 5 from Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control-Dallas in Dallas. The contract calls for Eaton to retrofit 300 MLRS vehicles into what Army leaders will call the Improved Launcher Mechanical System (ILMS). At the heart of the ILMS upgrade will be two digitally controlled hydraulic motors to power the azimuth drive unit and the elevation transmission, as well as a 3,000 pounds-per-square-inch hydraulic power supply pump and integrated reservoir package, Eaton officials say. For more information contact Eaton by phone at 216-523-5000, by fax at 216-479-7014, by post at Eaton Center, 1111 Superior Ave., Cleveland, Ohio 44114, by e-mail at [email protected], or on the World Wide Web at http://www.eaton.com/. — J.K.
Tyco Electronics winds up acquisition of Lucent Power Systems
Leaders of Tyco Electronics Corp. of Harrisburg, Pa., say they have completed their acquisition of Lucent Power Systems in Mesquite, Texas, for $2.5 billion in cash. Tyco officials announced their agreement to acquire Lucent Power last November. "This business is an excellent fit for Tyco Electronics," says L. Dennis Kozlowski, chairman and chief executive officer of Tyco International Ltd. Lucent Power will continue to supply power devices to Lucent Technologies in Allentown, Pa., under a multiyear agreement. Lucent Power provides power products for telecommunications service providers and for the computer industry. Tyco Electronics provides passive electronic components and designs wireless and fiber optic active components. — J.K.
Demand for rugged PCs grows by 10 percent each year
The worldwide market for ruggedized personal computer (PC) products will grow from $1.5 billion in 1999 to about $2.5 billion in 2004, which represents a compound annual growth rate of 10.7 percent. This prediction is from experts at Venture Development Corp. (VDC) in Natick, Mass. Among the primary drivers of the rugged PC market are communications equipment and service providers, VDC officials say. Communications industry officials recognize that commercial-grade PCs often lack the robustness and reliability they need, VDC analysts say. Down time can be expensive, and communications experts often spend more up front to make sure their equipment stays operating, VDC officials say. For more information contact VDC by phone at 508-653-9000, by fax at 508-653-9836, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.vdc-corp.com/. — J.K.
Northrop Grumman Awarded Follow-On Contract For B-52H Countermeasures System Upgrades
Systems designers from the Northrop Grumman Corp. Electronic Sensors and Systems Sector in Rolling Meadows, Ill., are upgrading an electronic warfare system in the U.S. Air Force B-52H bomber under terms of a $3.5 million follow-on contract. The contract, from the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center at Robins Air Force, Base, Ga., is to upgrade the receivers and transmitters in the AN/ALQ-155 electronic countermeasures system. Northrop Grumman's work will involve integrating non-developmental items from the company's AN/ALQ-135 and the AN/ALQ-165 systems into the existing AN/ALQ-155 receivers and transmitters, says Bill Ober, vice president-RF Electronic Warfare Programs at Northrop Grumman's Defensive Systems Division. The upgraded AN/ALQ-155 will be a form, fit and functional replacement that reduces the number of line replaceable units per aircraft, increases system reliability, transmits five times more power, and provides techniques against modern threats within multiple bands. The upgrades will additionally improve reliability, maintainability, and performance of the system, company officials say. For more information contact Northrop Grumman by phone at 847-259-9600, by fax at 847-870-5713, by post at 600 Hicks Road, Rolling Meadows, Ill. 60008, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.northrop-grumman .com/. — J.K.
