BMT Fleet Technology to support Canadian Arctic Offshore Patrol Ship project

13-May-2008

BMT Fleet Technology Limited has been awarded the Definition, Engineering, Logistics and Management Support (DELMS) contract for the Canadian Arctic Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS) project. The Canadian navy will acquire between six and eight ice-capable patrol ships to assert and enforce sovereignty in Canada's waters, including the Arctic. The ships will be gun-armed, have sophisticated surveillance and communications equipment and may carry a helicopter. AOPS will be able to operate in medium first year ice and sustain operations for up to four months.

Under the DELMS contract, BMT will assist Canada's AOPS Program Management Office by exploring many technical and program issues during the Definition Phase of the project, and supporting the PMO during the Implementation Phase to deliver ships from 2013 to 2019. Much of the work during the Definition Phase (2008 - 2009) will be to develop an illustrative design of the AOPS. The illustrative design will allow the PMO to refine and validate the ship specification and Statement of Work to be used to select the contractor for Project Implementation. The DELMS contract includes a defined Core Component worth approximately $4.5 million, and emergent tasks during the initial duration of four years could raise the total value to $13 million. The DELMS contract may be extended for up to an additional ten years and a total of over $18 million.

BMT has assembled a strong team to cover the breadth of technical subjects required for AOPS DELMS. BMT's own strengths of ship design and arctic operations and its experience of supporting the Joint Support Ship PMO will be supplemented by Aker Yards Marine (AYM) and BAE Systems. AYM of Vancouver brings experience of design and construction of icebreakers patrol vessels, and will be a key resource for the Definition work. BAE Systems of Glasgow, Scotland has also designed and built patrol vessels, and designs and integrates combat systems for numerous ship types. Other companies within the world-wide BMT Group will provide specialist skills as required. Calian of Ottawa will provide some key resources.

Andrew Kendrick, BMT Fleet's Vice President of Operations, said: "We are delighted to be in on the ground floor for this important project. The AOPS project will benefit from our experience of supporting the Joint Support Ship PMO under a similar contract, and our team looks forward to contributing its range of strengths to the Definition Design."