Telford-based RBSL wins £16m British Army contract

The joint venture company Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) has won a UK MoD contract to upgrade and sustain the British Army’s fleet of Fuchs/Fox CBRN reconnaissance vehicles and training simulator. The order is worth over £16m.

The Fuchs is a 6×6 armoured vehicle with built-in detection equipment for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats. Rheinmetall possesses longstanding experience and wide-ranging expertise in this high-tech field. Thanks to continuous technical advances and performance upgrades, international users of the CBRN Reconnaissance Fuchs/Fox are able to access the very latest in sensor technology. Just awarded, the modernisation contract see the British MOD utilising Rheinmetall’s experience and abilities to assure the future operational readiness and effectiveness of the UK CBRN Reconnaissance fleet.

RBSL will address equipment-related obsolescence issues and upgrade the system with the latest generation of sensing capabilities. Rheinmetall Landsysteme will be drawing on comprehensive technological support from of its centre of excellence for NBC systems technology in Kassel.

The team will also review safety risks and implement a new support contract that includes technical support, provision of spares and repairs, maintenance, training, and design services. The British Army will thus be benefitting from Rheinmetall’s extensive experience in the field of NBC detection vehicles.

The work will be led out of RBSL’s facility in Telford, West Midlands, with the support of a UK supply chain. The programme is in line with the UK government’s agenda to provide opportunity to SMEs and level up regional economies, as well as to protect skilled jobs in engineering and manufacturing.

Peter Hardisty, RBSL Managing Director, said: “RBSL looks forward to applying our extensive knowledge and experience with armoured vehicles to the Fuchs programme. The contract protects key engineering skills in the UK, it presents an opportunity to exploit new technology, and it provides the British Army with an enhanced capability.”

RBSL has a highly skilled workforce of more than 450 employees based at sites across the UK, including 250 engineers who specialise in key capabilities such as weapon systems, survivability, and lethality..

The upgrades delivered under the contract will provide an increase in interoperability and commonality with a number of the UK’s NATO partners. The vehicles will also provide the British Army with an advanced ability to detect CBRN threats.