Defence

Morgan teams with SAIC on US Marine Corps' ACVs

Posted 28 February 2017

Sixteen development prototypes for the US Marine Corps' next-gen Amphibious Combat Vehicles 1.1 (ACVs) will be fitted with special composite armour systems from Morgan Advanced Materials, after the business was awarded a contract with Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC).

The Composites and Defence Systems business of Morgan will supply a complete composite armour solution, consisting of appliqué armour and spall liners which are part of its established CAMAC composite platform armour portfolio.

Furthermore, Morgan will deliver lightweight composite flotation boxes, specifically designed to fit the vehicle’s geometry. The development of this high performance, low mass armour system is a result of working with leading materials and decades of engineering experience in ballistic and blast protective technologies.

The selection of Morgan’s armour solution and composite flotation boxes is the latest stage of a wider tender process from the Marine Corps. SAIC is one of two prime contractors selected to develop next-generation ACV 1.1s for the Engineering, Manufacturing and Development (EMD) phase of this competition. Once completed, the company’s prototypes will be tested in 2017, with the potential for both SAIC’s design and Morgan’s CAMAC armour to be down selected for the full programme.

Duncan Eldridge, President of Morgan’s Composites and Defence Systems business, commented: “We are honoured to be selected by SAIC to deliver the armour solution and composite floatation boxes for their ACV. Our platform armour solutions are a result of extensive materials and product development, ensuring our armour delivers outstanding multi-hit protection at an extraordinarily low weight. This is the latest in a number of significant project wins for our composites and defence business, and is a huge endorsement of Morgan’s composite armour technology and product development team.”