Singapore's ST Engineering said Thursday it has won a five-year contract worth 500 million US dollars from the US Army to supply equipment that will support and maintain high-tech weapons systems. The Singapore-listed firm, which describes itself as one of Asia's leading defence and specialty vehicle makers, said the deal involves providing rugged laptops, test equipment and instruments.
It said in a statement the laptop computers are "designed and qualified to withstand the harshest tactical environment for computer systems" and can be used under difficult weather conditions common in the battlefield. The test equipment and instruments are designed to perform diagnostics and maintenance work on weapons systems, missiles and wheeled or tracked military vehicles, the statement said.
ST Engineering has been expanding its defence markets beyond Singapore. Last month, it unveiled a locally manufactured all-terrain vehicle that would be supplied to the British army under a deal worth over 150 million pounds (236.75 million US) ST Engineering, which also has businesses in aerospace, marine and electronics, earned revenues of 5.34 billion Singapore dollars (3.84 billion US) in 2008.