Spectrum Microwave Awarded Multi-Year Contract for Power Amplifiers Used in Joint Tactical Radio Systems — Press Release

January 13, 2010 by Matthew Potter · Comment
Filed under: Business Line, Companies, Events, IT, Press Releases, Spectrum Communications, logistics, production program 

Spectrum Microwave Awarded Multi-Year Contract for Power Amplifiers Used in Joint Tactical Radio Systems

FAIRVIEW, Pa., Jan. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Spectrum Control, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPEC) , today announced that its Spectrum Microwave Business Unit has been selected by Thales Communications, Inc. in Clarksburg, Maryland as the Supplier for the RF Power Amplifier for the Extended Band Manpack, an accessory to the AN/PRC-148 JTRS Enhanced Multiband Inter/Intra Team Radio. Production of the RF Power Amplifier will be performed at Spectrum Microwave’s Palm Bay, Florida operation and is currently expected to commence in early 2010.

Dick Southworth, Spectrum Control’s President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “This is a major win for our Microwave Group. The selection by Thales for the development and production of the RF Power Amplifier for their Extended Band Manpack Radio highlights our technical design and production capability strengths for the military market. We look forward to a successful and continuing relationship with Thales on this and future projects.”

Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains statements that are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the Company’s business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors and risks discussed from time to time in the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings and reports. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.

About Spectrum Control

Spectrum Control, Inc. is a leader in the design, development and manufacture of high-performance custom electronic solutions for the defense, aerospace, communications, and medical industries worldwide.

For more information about Spectrum Control and its products, please visit the Company’s website at www.spectrumcontrol.com.

Source: Spectrum Control, Inc.

CONTACT: Investor Relations, John P. Freeman, Senior Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer, Spectrum Control, Inc., +1-814-474-4310

Web Site: http://www.spectrumcontrol.com/

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GAO Decision affirms Major Army Conclusions Supporting Oshkosh FMTV Award; Denies Challenges to $440 Million Dollars in Savings And Nearly All Other Protestor Complaints — Press Release

December 17, 2009 by Matthew Potter · Comment
Filed under: Business Line, Companies, Events, Oshkosh Truck Corp, Press Releases, production program 

GAO Decision affirms Major Army Conclusions Supporting Oshkosh FMTV Award; Denies Challenges to $440 Million Dollars in Savings And Nearly All Other Protestor Complaints

OSHKOSH, Wis. — Dec. 17, 2009 — The U.S. Army’s conclusion that Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) proposed the lowest price and has the capability and experience to build the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) was unchallenged by the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) decision, released in redacted form today. The decision significantly expands on the GAO’s press release of December 14, 2009, regarding the protests against the U.S. Army’s award decision by BAE Systems and Navistar Defense.

The decision by the GAO upheld only two narrowly-defined aspects of the protests against the U.S. Army by the disappointed bidders, rejecting all of the numerous other protest grounds raised during the three-month protest process which covered virtually every aspect of the evaluation.

The GAO determined that the Army erred in evaluating one element of the broader production capability subfactor. To address this, the GAO recommended that the Army re-evaluate the offerors’ proposals as to this element and also determine whether there was any possible impact on a second element. These elements are just two of seven elements in the production subfactor of the capability evaluation factor, all of which receive less weight than price. The GAO provided no opinion as to whether the re-evaluation of these two elements would in fact change the award decision by the Army.

The Oshkosh proposed price is significantly lower than what the Government is currently paying the incumbent FMTV contractor and was revealed today to be nearly $440 million lower over the life of the contract than that proposed by incumbent BAE. Widely publicized protestor complaints relating to Oshkosh’s price, armored cab design, financial stability and manufacturing prowess all were denied by the GAO. The GAO stated in its decision, “With the exception of two areas, we find that the [Army’s] evaluation was reasonable.” Oshkosh Defense was awarded the contract on August 26, 2009.

“After a thorough acquisition process by the Army that began nearly seven months ago, followed by formal protests that took three months to resolve, we believe the Army will quickly and appropriately address the GAO’s recommendations,” said Robert G. Bohn, Oshkosh Corporation chairman and chief executive officer. “We believe that in its review, the Army will find that Oshkosh Corporation was and continues to be the correct choice for the FMTV contract, providing proven capability and the best value to the Army and the taxpayer.”

As the GAO’s decision reaffirms, Oshkosh was awarded the contract because the company bid the FMTV at a very competitive price while receiving excellent evaluations for meeting vehicle production and delivery requirements, including any possible production surges that might be required by the Army.

The U.S. Army has 60 days from December 14, 2009 to act on the GAO’s recommendations and report its findings.

“Oshkosh plans to build the FMTV and meet all of the Army’s objectives while saving hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars that the Army can use for other pressing requirements,” Bohn said. “And we will do this without impacting our other existing or proposed military vehicle contract programs.”

Bohn added, “It is important to realize the GAO’s decision did not recommend that the proposals be recompeted or revised, nor did it recommend termination of our contract. We believe that the redacted decision issued today further supports our assessment that Oshkosh is in a strong position to retain the contract when the two narrow issues on which the protests were upheld are reconsidered.”

Oshkosh remains the only current manufacturer of both medium and heavy tactical wheeled vehicles in the U.S. defense industry, having produced more than 70,000 military-class vehicles in its manufacturing facilities. Oshkosh Corporation’s proven production capabilities were recently recognized by the National Center for Advanced Technologies (NCAT), which awarded Oshkosh with a 2009 Defense Manufacturing Excellence Award for its M-ATV launch team, which has exceeded delivery requirements for every month since the contract award on June 30, 2009.

About Oshkosh Defense

Oshkosh Defense, a division of Oshkosh Corporation, is an industry-leading global designer and manufacturer of tactical military trucks and armored wheeled vehicles, delivering a full product line of conventional and hybrid vehicles, advanced armor options, proprietary suspensions and vehicles with payloads that can exceed 70 tons. Oshkosh Defense provides a global service and supply network including full life-cycle support and remanufacturing, and its vehicles are recognized the world over for superior performance, reliability and protection. For more information, visit www.oshkoshdefense.com.

About Oshkosh Corporation
Oshkosh Corporation is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialty access equipment, commercial, fire & emergency and military vehicles and vehicle bodies. Oshkosh Corp. manufactures, distributes and services products under the brands of Oshkosh®, JLG®, Pierce®, McNeilus®, Medtec®, Jerr-Dan®, Oshkosh Specialty Vehicles, Frontline™, SMIT™, CON-E-CO®, London® and IMT®. Oshkosh products are valued worldwide in businesses where high quality, superior performance, rugged reliability and long-term value are paramount. For more information, log on to www.oshkoshcorporation.com.

®, ™ All brand names referred to in this news release are trademarks of Oshkosh Corporation or its subsidiary companies.

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Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that the Company believes to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company’s future financial position, business strategy, targets, projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “should,” “project” or “plan” or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include risks related to the required increase in the rate of production for the M-ATV contract and the amount, if any, of additional orders for M-ATVs that the Company may receive; the cyclical nature of the Company’s access equipment, commercial and fire & emergency markets, especially during a global recession and credit crisis; the duration of the global recession, which could lead to additional impairment charges related to many of the Company’s intangible assets; the expected level and timing of U.S. Department of Defense procurement of products and services and funding thereof, including the outcome of the formal protests of the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) award to the Company; risks related to reductions in government expenditures and the uncertainty of government contracts; the consequences of financial leverage associated with the JLG acquisition, which could limit the Company’s ability to pursue various opportunities; risks related to the collectability of receivables during a recession, particularly for those businesses with exposure to construction markets; risks related to production delays as a result of the economy’s impact on the Company’s suppliers; the potential for commodity costs to rise sharply, including in a future economic recovery; risks associated with international operations and sales, including foreign currency fluctuations; and the potential for increased costs relating to compliance with changes in laws and regulations. Additional information concerning these and other factors is contained in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company assumes no obligation, and disclaims any obligation, to update information contained in this press release.

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Northrop Grumman and SELEX GALILEO Team to Compete for U.S. Army’s Common Infrared Countermeasures Program

September 10, 2009 by Jeffrey Bradford · Comment
Filed under: Syndicated Industry News 
Northrop Grumman and SELEX GALILEO Team to Compete for U.S. Army's Common Infrared Countermeasures Program
September 10, 2009

ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. - Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) today announced the formation of a strategic alliance with SELEX Galileo, a Finmeccanica company, to compete for the U.S. Army's Common Infrared Countermeasures (CIRCM) program.

CIRCM is intended to provide the U.S. military with a
laser-based infrared (IR) countermeasures solution against current and
future IR threat systems. For the CIRCM program, the Northrop
Grumman-SELEX Galileo team has integrated the ECLIPSE micro
pointer/tracker with a processing and laser countermeasures capability
to produce a 4th generation lightweight, highly reliable Directional
Infrared Countermeasures (DIRCM) system specifically designed for
medium and light helicopter protection.

SELEX Galileo began development of its Economic Compact
Lightweight Pointer-Tracker System (ECLIPSE) in 2007. An ECLIPSE
development model was integrated with the Northrop Grumman Viper(tm)
IRCM laser, processor and missile warner in a highly successful live
fire demonstration in 2008 at the Tonopah Missile Range in Nevada. In
this test, the ECLIPSE prototype micro pointer/tracker successfully
acquired, tracked and defeated an infrared missile in flight.

"The Northrop Grumman-SELEX Galileo team represents the most
experienced laser IRCM development and production capability in the
industry with three generations of DIRCM systems developed, and over
1,200 pointer trackers and 1,100 lasers produced, for 450 aircraft
installations on 50 different aircraft types including large and small
fixed wing, rotary wing and tilt wing," said Carl Smith, vice president
of Northrop Grumman's IRCM Products.

"The versatile, open architecture approach that this new system
is based upon will allow the customer to use existing equipment such as
missile warners and countermeasures dispensers--while improving the
survivability of these helicopters significantly with the addition of
modern, laser DIRCM capability--and allow continued future growth.
Backed by decades of investment, hundreds of thousands of operational
flight hours and actual helicopter combat experience, this team is
ready to protect the U.S. Army's warfighters," said Smith.

The only such aircraft protection system currently in full
production, Northrop Grumman's LAIRCM system is now installed or
scheduled for installation on several hundred military aircraft to
protect approximately 50 different types of large fixed-wing transports
and rotary-wing platforms from infrared missile attacks. The system
functions by automatically detecting a missile launch, determining if
it is a threat and activating a high-intensity laser-based
countermeasure system to track and defeat the missile.

"MANPADS (man-portable air defense systems) pose one of the
most serious threats to the army aviator operating in today's hostile
environments," said Norman Bone, senior vice president, Radar and
Advanced Targeting and Group Operations director, SELEX Galileo.
"Building on over twenty years of experience within this field, we are
now able to provide a lightweight low cost directed countermeasure
solution based on the ECLIPSE pointer tracker, to protect helicopter
platforms from the latest generations of missiles. We are proud to
support the U.S. Army and look forward to continuing our partnership
with Northrop Grumman for many years to come."

SELEX Galileo provides world class capabilities in
surveillance, protection, tracking, targeting, avionics and imaging
systems. With industrial presence in the UK, Italy and U.S., the
Company builds on 60 years of experience and market presence in more
than 70 countries.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology
company whose 120,000 employees provides innovative systems, products,
and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and
shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.

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Navy Awards LCS Contract

March 4, 2009 by Matthew Potter · Comment
Filed under: Business Line, Contract Additions, Contract Awards, Events, Marinette Marine, Services, States, U.S. Navy, Wisconsin, production program 

The U.S. Navy awarded Marinette Marine a contract modification in order to “preserve production capability” for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program. The Business Journal reports that Marinette Marine was part of a team with Lockheed Martin that built one of the first two LCS ships for the Navy. The Navy plans to award two more ships and it was believed that only one of the two teams that had built a ship each would qualify for this next order. This contract action prevented Marinette Marine from cutting back on its work force, hence the preserving part. There is still no guarantee that the company will get further LCS work but it keeps the option open.

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