Tenix Pty Limited, of Melbourne, Australia, has awarded a contract to Northrop Grumman Corporation’s (NYSE: NOC) Sperry Marine business unit to supply integrated Navigation Systems for two new large amphibious ships to be built for the Australian navy.
The contract, valued at $8.4 million (USD) calls for Sperry Marine to supply a state-of-the-art suite of Navigation Systems and sensors for the two new Canberra-class LHDs. The contract also includes engineering and technical support for configuration, installation, commissioning, a land-based test site and sea trials. The Navigation Systems will include two Sperry Marine MK39 Mod 3A ring laser gyro navigator (RLGN) inertial navigation systems. The RLGN units will be integrated with the ship’s radars, electronic charting system, autopilot, steering control, speed and depth sensors, GPS and DGPS positioning systems, automatic identification systems, voyage data recorder and other systems and sensors using Sperry Marine’s NavDDS data distribution network. “This important award solidifies Sperry Marine’s position as a key supplier of advanced navigation technology for the Australian navy as well as other international navies and coast guard forces,” said J. Nolasco DaCunha, vice president of Sperry Marine, who noted that Sperry Marine was also recently selected to supply the Integrated Bridge System and integrated navigation system for the U.K. Royal Navy’s next-generation aircraft carriers. The two ships are being constructed for the Australian navy as a joint venture of Tenix and Spanish shipbuilder Navantia. The hulls will be built at Navantia’s shipyard in Ferrol, Spain. They will be transported by heavy-lift ship to Tenix’s Williamstown shipyard in Australia, where the superstructure will be added and the ship systems will be installed. The new LHDs will provide a transformational capability for the Australian Defence Force, allowing it to conduct a wide range of operations, including high-end amphibious war fighting scenarios, projection of land forces and humanitarian relief. The 27,822-ton ships will have six Helicopter landing spots and can also be used to launch fixed-wing unmanned aerial reconnaissance planes. They can transport up to 150 vehicles, including the new M1A1 Abrams tanks. Maximum troop capacity is more than 1,100 fully armed soldiers, and landing craft will operate from an inclined well deck. The ships’ extensive medical facilities will include two operating theaters and a fully equipped hospital ward. Sperry Marine, headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., and with major engineering and support offices in New Malden, United Kingdom and Hamburg, Germany, provides smart navigation and ship control solutions for the international marine industry with customer service and support through offices in 16 countries, sales representatives in 47 countries and authorized service depots in more than 250 locations worldwide. |
