11:56 GMT, July 3, 2009 Saab has been awarded a contract by Denel Land Systems to develop and supply fire control computers for use on the South African National Defence Force New Generation Infantry Combat Vehicles.

Denel Land Systems previously received a contract from Armaments Corporation of South Africa for the development of the New Generation Infantry Combat Vehicles (NGICV) for the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). The development includes the manufacturing of five variants of the vehicle to be used in different roles by the South African Armed Forces.

Saab South Africa has, in turn, been awarded a contract for development, integration and production of the Fire Control Computer for use on the new vehicles. The initial phase of the contract covers development and production of a batch of engineering development units for evaluation and testing in the NGICV. Upon completion of successful testing and evaluation a number of production units are expected to be produced in a second phase.

“With this contract Saab further expand our support business in South Africa as well as in co-operation with Denel Land Systems in additional markets worldwide, says, Riaz Saloojee, President, Saab South Africa.


Saab responsible for design and integration

Saab’s Fire Control Computer proposal is mainly built on Commercial of the Shelf (COTS) components produced in-house by Saab as well as a number of electronic cards supplied by other original equipment manufacturers (OEM). Saab is responsible for overall design and integration of the components in the Fire Control Computer as well as integration of the complete unit in the combat vehicles. Initial development work has already begun with final deliveries of production units expected to occur in late 2015.

Furthermore, Saab South Africa is committed to support Denel Land Systems/SANDF regarding maintenance and repair for the life time of the system.