Lockheed Martin [LMT] is coming off a successful summer testing its Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) entrant in mountainous terrain and is making final preparations before the Marine Corps releases draft requests for proposals (RFP) this fall and the final RFP in February.
Lockheed Martin’s Havoc, based off the Patria 8×8 Armored Modular Vehicle, performed well during a 10-day ACV demonstration at the Nevada Automotive Test Center’s Butte Mountain Trail course in August. That particular test trail “represents probably some of the most aggressive terrain worldwide,” with the mile-long trail seeing a 1,000-foot elevation change throughout the course, Frank Bohlmann, Lockheed Martin’s director of ground combat vehicles, told
Defense Daily last week.
“The thing that the Marine Corps seemed to like about our vehicle is the ride quality and the speed at which we were able to execute that course,” he said. Asked if the demonstration showed the need for any changes, he said, “I think the thing they certainly like about the heritage vehicle that we have is its mobility. We’re going to leave all that piece alone. We have some polishing to do on the seat arrangements, since we’re going from previously a nine-plus-three to now a 10-plus-three. Nothing overly challenging.”
In addition to smoothing out its design, Lockheed Martin has also been working on solidifying its supply chain. The Marine Corps made clear it wants American companies contributing to its ACV, and Lockheed Martin said it would keep Patria onboard as the drive line provider but find American contractors for the rest of the vehicle.
Bohlmann said Tuesday at the Modern Day Marine military expo that the Marine Corps intends to release draft RFPs in October and November before releasing the final RFP in February. The program would hit a milestone B decision in the fall of 2015, with a contract award following closely behind that decision.
The Lockheed Martin team is finalizing its proposal, Bohlmann said, poring over the details of the requirements and doing trade studies to see if they can bring in more value while staying under the price point–about $5 million to $6 million per vehicle, including spare parts and other add-ons.
“We don’t want to give them any reason to not choose this vehicle,” he said. “They’ve got a pretty aggressive schedule, but nothing that’s not doable. They’ve got a timeline we think we can meet and we’ve got a product we think they’re interested in.”