Petah Tikva-based laser systems developer ITL Optronics Ltd., (TASE: ITL) and a subsidiary, Mikal Ltd., have won an initial $1 million grant from the US Marines Corps to develop future battledress. The grant is part of a competition against General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) for a $50 million tender. ITL is also competing against Vectronix AG of Switzerland in a $15 million tender to supply laser finders to the Marines.
This week, ITL also delivered 1,000 infantry night scopes to the IDF, to fill a shortage discovered during the war in Lebanon. The Ministry of Defense procurement and production directorate said that with the delivery of the night scopes on time, the defense establishment would order thousands of laser sights from ITL for the infantry for an estimated NIS 30 million.
ITL president and CEO Eli Venezia told “Globes” that, in recent months, the company had prepared a recovery plan whose results would be seen beginning in 2007. The company will post a loss in 2006, however.
The first stage of the Marines tender included comparison tests between the battledresses offered by ITL and General Dynamics for the 17,000-unit tender. The Marines HQ praised ITL’s bid, and invited the company to prepare 40 battledresses for a pilot, for which it received a $1 million grant.
The future infantry battledress comprises four parts. One is a computer with a GPS navigation system and directional video. The second component is a target acquisition kit with laser rangefinder, which can mark targets and sources of fire, thereby closing fire circles in real time. The third item is a helmet-based screen on which the soldier receives a video picture and command and control display. The fourth part is command and control and communications software inside the soldier’s computer. All the components are part of the soldier’s combat webbing.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on August 31, 2006
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