Harris Corporation was one of three awardees of a multi-award IDIQ contract to supply HMS Manpack radios to the U.S. Army. The IDIQ contract consists of a five-year base and an additional five-year option and has a ceiling of $12.7 billion.
The Army expects full rate production to begin in the fourth quarter of Harris’ fiscal 2017 and to acquire approximately 65,000 HMS Manpack radios under the IDIQs.
The U.S. Army selected the Harris AN/PRC-158 multichannel radio for both dismounted and mounted manpack configurations. The Harris HMS Manpack radio features a two-channel architecture and integrated cross-banding. It includes SRW, SINCGARS and MUOS SATCOM waveforms while maintaining backward interoperability with legacy waveforms.
The HMS (Handheld, Manpack & Small Form-Fit) Manpack forms the core of the U.S. Army’s tactical communications architecture, providing an advanced communications infrastructure from the dismounted soldier to the Tactical Operations Center.
The selection follows the U.S. government’s decision to open the HMS Manpack competition to technically compliant, commercially developed radios, and further solidifies the U.S. Army’s commitment to bring future capabilities to the warfighter.
“The HMS Manpack award is a major step forward for the U.S. Army’s tactical radio modernization program, and brings essential battlefield networking and communications capabilities to the warfighter,” said Brendan O’Connell, President, Tactical Communications, Harris Communication Systems.
Meanwhile, Harris Corporation and Albany International Corp. announced a definitive agreement under which Albany International will acquire Harris’ Aerostructures business for an enterprise value of $210 million. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory review, and is expected to close by the end of the first calendar quarter or early second calendar quarter of 2016.
Harris Aerostructures designs, manufactures and assembles advanced composite structures found throughout commercial and military aircraft – from wings and tanks to rotor blades and the airframes that form the shell of the aircraft. These composites combine high-strength fibers that deliver many of the same benefits of metal – strength, stiffness, stability and the ability to perform in extreme temperatures – with the added benefit of less weight and more corrosion resistance.
Harris Corporation is a leading technology innovator, solving our customers’ toughest mission-critical challenges by providing solutions that connect, inform and protect. Harris supports customers in more than 125 countries, has approximately $8 billion in annual revenue and 22,000 employees worldwide. The company is organized into four business segments: Communication Systems, Space and Intelligence Systems, Electronic Systems, and Critical Networks.
