Battelle has received a $170m contract to build non-standard commercial vehicles (NSCVs) for the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) forces.
The contract will see the company produce both armoured and unarmoured vehicles for the next five years.
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Production of the NSCVs will be carried out at the company's facility in West Columbus, US.
Battelle Mission and Defense Technologies business vice-president Fred Byus said: “Battelle has a proven track record of performing sophisticated systems integration for military and commercial applications.
“Under this contract, our vehicle systems team will execute on its custom designs and integrate complex systems to meet mission requirements—at a competitive cost.”
The company's ground team takes existing vehicles and reengineers them with protective armour.
It also adds durability features to vehicles for operations in rugged terrain, as well as enhanced alternators for extreme climates.
Based on Hilux, Land Cruiser or Ford platforms, Battelle’s armoured vehicles are re-engineered with crew protection, enhanced suspension for improved off-road mobility, and a reinforced chassis for durability.
The company's vehicles have previously completed formal durability testing and system level armour testing.
Battelle recently provided armoured high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles (HMMWVs) for the US armed forces, and trained military personnel and contractors to install more than 500 protective armour kits onto existing vehicles.
