TALONs still sharp

News

QinetiQ-owned Foster-Miller has received a further $133 million contract for robot parts and service in addition to the $96 million TALON EOD robots contract announced two weeks ago.

Foster-Miller, a wholly owned QinetiQ company , has been awarded a $133 million contract for TALON robot spare parts and service, bringing its total current award for TALON EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) robots to $257 million through 2012.

This contract represents the third component of a three-part award that began in September 2002 with a $27 million contract for TALON EOD robots from the Man Transportable Robotic System (MTRS) programme managed for all service branches by the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NAVSEA) in Indian Head, Maryland.

Two weeks ago, NAVSEA awarded Foster-Miller an additional $96 million to increase the number of TALON EOD robots to up to 1200 over the next seven years, bringing the company's total award to $124 million, then the largest single order in its history.

Foster-Miller is the leading supplier of EOD robots for Iraq and Afghanistan. Its robots have already successfully completed more than 50,000 missions there to defuse roadside bombs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).