Oshkosh Truck Corporation announced today that the company has received a $30.6 million contract award from the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command for its Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle program.

Under this production contract, Oshkosh will produce 100 Category I MRAP vehicles that will be deployed with U.S. military forces worldwide. Oshkosh plans to expedite its production schedule and deliver the first units within 120 days to meet the Marine Corps' urgent needs for additional armored vehicles in theater.

The MRAP program has current estimated requirements of 4,100 Category I and II vehicles with an approximate value of more than $2 billion. Potential long-term requirements are estimated to be significantly higher. The Category I vehicle is the smaller of the two MRAP vehicles, intended for urban operations and referred to as the Mine Resistant Utility Vehicle (MRUV).

"Oshkosh is prepared to meet and exceed the critical delivery and protection requirements of the U.S. Marine Corps and the MRAP program. The armored proposed vehicles are engineered to save lives in the face of today's asymmetric warfare threats such as mines and IEDs. Company's production and engineering capabilities will ensure the rapid delivery of world-class armored vehicles as the MRAP program continues to develop. Oshkosh is also prepared to provide the long-term logistics support required by a deployed MRAP fleet. The company has the experience and infrastructure in place in the theater of operation to provide whatever level of support is required. Oshkosh Truck Corporation have maintained and up-armored thousands of vehicles, of many makes and models, at company's facilities in theater over the past four years. Service installations and field service representatives are already in place, ready to support the MRAP fleet of vehicles as soon as it is operational.

The MRAP program is a joint acquisition between the Marine Corps and the U.S. Army and is taking place under Rapid Deployment Capability authority, intended to field protected vehicles to forces in theater in large quantities as rapidly as possible. In January, Oshkosh was one of nine companies awarded a contract to provide vehicles for testing under the MRAP program.

The Category I vehicle proposed by Oshkosh Truck is designed by Protected Vehicles, Inc. (PVI) of North Charleston, South Carolina. Over the past year, Oshkosh and PVI have forged a relationship that takes advantage of the experience, strengths and expertise of both companies. PVI will provide Oshkosh with armored hulls outfitted with their advanced armor technology, and Oshkosh will take advantage of its production capability and engineering expertise to provide completed vehicles with the performance, reliability, and quality standards that have become synonymous with Oshkosh Truck tactical wheeled vehicles.

The vehicle, dubbed the Alpha, is a 13-ton, 4x4 armored vehicle with room for eight occupants. It has a v-shaped hull and is designed to meet or exceed all ballistic and mine protection capabilities specified under the MRAP requirement. The vehicle is also fully air-transportable, making it simpler to re-deploy once in theater. The MRAP program is expected to greatly increase the safety of Marines and soldiers in the field.

Sergyi Way
01.03.2007

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