GD Wins Army's SMET Ground Robot Competition For The Second Time

摘要

The Army has awarded General Dynamics [GD] a $249 million deal to deliver ground robots for the Small Multipurpose Equipment Transport program, the second attempt at a contract after the first deal was terminated following a successful protest. GD was also the original winner of the SMET contract last fall with its Multi-Utility Tactical Transport vehicles, with plans in place to begin delivering the robotic systems in 2021. The initial contract with GD was terminated in December after Textron filed a protest claiming GD significantly altered its design following a soldier evaluation during the OTA period. Army officials restarted the competition in February and sent new Request for Proposals to the four original competitors; GD, Polaris [PII], HDT Expeditionary Systems and Textron's [TXT] Howe & Howe.