American Rheinmetall announced it had won a $7.28 million contract to support the U.S. Marine Corps with autonomous unmanned ground vehicles.
The contract, executed through the Defense Logistics Agency with ADS, Inc., will cover the manufacturing and delivery of Mission Master SP Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicles (AUGVs), associated Marine kits, and supporting equipment to the U.S. Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory (MCWL).
Rheinmetall said the effort includes the delivery of 12 U-UGVs and five amphibious kits, the most advanced Mission Master configuration developed by the company to date. The vehicles will support continued operational evaluation, experimentation, and capability development to the Marines as the military branch expands its autonomous logistics and “expeditionary mobility initiatives.”
“This award represents a significant milestone in our long-standing partnership with the United States Marine Corps,” Matt Warnick, CEO of American Rheinmetall, said. “For more than four years, we have worked side-by-side with Marines to mature, refine, and advance autonomous ground capabilities. The Mission Master SP captures the full breadth of those lessons learned and showcases Rheinmetall’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge, reliable, and mission-ready autonomous systems.”
The new A-UGV vehicles will incorporate the company’s PATH autonomy architecture, expanded vehicle characterization and modular payload integration, as well as the Marine Kit that will upgrade the vehicles to amphibious operations. The vehicle contract includes a comprehensive suite of program management, engineering support, logistics coordination, technical documentation, operator training, and acceptance testing, the company said. Work will be done by American Rheinmetall in the US, with support from Rheinmetall Canada.