Electronics Production |
PartnerTech, Bofors Defence in colaboration
Bofors Defence has chosen Swedish EMS-Provider PartnerTech as a principal supplier for its newly developed Excalibur artillery grenade. As part of that arrangement, PartnerTech has just received a pilot series order worth some SEK 30 million over one year. Serial production is slated for 2008.
"The order has great long-term significance and value for us," says PartnerTech CEO Mikael Jonson.
Bofors Defence in Karlskoga, Sweden and Raytheon Missile Systems in the United States jointly launched the Excalibur project in December 2002. Satellite and inertial navigation provides the grenade with considerably better precision and range than existing systems.
"We've worked closely with PartnerTech to ensure Excalibur's producibility," says Bofors Defence CEO Magnus Ingesson. "PartnerTech has supplied many of our prototypes in recent years, so we felt comfortable turning to them for this pilot series as well."
PartnerTech's Karlskoga plant, which will manufacture Excalibur, has already started on associated training and investment activities.
"We're honored by having been entrusted with this project," says Kjell Edholm, manager of operations at Karlskoga. "While the pilot series will increase our capacity utilization, that will be offset by internal transfers as the result of cutbacks by other customers. An order for serial production will have a greater impact on employment here."
