Additional $20M in TALON Robots and Parts for "Robot Hospitals" in Iraq and Afghanistan
06 October 2006 16:04
Foster-Miller, Inc., announced today that an additional $20 million worth of TALON® robots and replacement parts have been ordered by the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) on behalf of the Robotic Systems Joint Program Office (RSJPO), for immediate use by "robot hospitals" in Iraq and Afghanistan. The funds have been released from a $63.4 million IDIQ (indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity) contract with the Navy - one of two that Foster-Miller has for TALON robots and replacement parts.
"Robot hospitals" in Iraq and Afghanistan fix TALON robots damaged by defusing or destroying IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and put them back into service within four hours. They are staffed by Army, Marine and Navy maintenance and repair technicians whose mission is to get TALONs back into the hands of troops by rebuilding them with a combination of replacement parts and usable parts scavenged from other damaged TALON robots.
"The insurgents have been intensifying their attacks on the robots because they know if they can disable the robot, the soldiers will have to go out and defuse the IED themselves," says Dr. William Ribich, President and CEO of Foster-Miller. "The personnel in the robot hospitals step up to every fresh challenge and do whatever it takes to meet their four-hour turnaround time."
Foster-Miller currently has two IDIQ contracts with the Navy for TALON robots and replacement parts. The Navy is the central procurement entity that buys robots for all branches of the service. Last week, Foster-Miller announced the release of another $22.8 million from its nine-year, $257 million IDIQ from the Navy Explosive Ordnance Technology Division (NAVEODTECHDIV) for more TALON robots and replacement parts for the EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) teams working in Iraq and Afghanistan.
For more information on this company:
Foster-Miller - Robots for EOD, IED, Weaponization, Chemical Sensing and Reconnaissance
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