Sensor firm FLIR grabs first big Army unmanned systems contract since it bought Endeavor Robotics for $382 million

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Sensor firm FLIR grabs first big Army unmanned systems contract since it bought Endeavor Robotics for $382 million

FLIR's Kobra robot, the Army's new CRS-H vehicle

US Army/FLIR

FLIR's Kobra robot, the Army's new CRS-H vehicle

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  • FLIR Systems was recently awarded a $109 million contract to deliver Kobra robots to serve as the Army's new Common Robotic System - Heavy (CRS-H), an unmanned ground robot built to help EOD units.
  • The award marks the first big unmanned systems win for FLIR since it acquired Endeavor Robotics for $382 million earlier this year.
  • In recent years, FLIR has evolved from a world-leading sensor company to a more diverse firm achieving success in the small and mid-sized unmanned system space due to its acquisition of Endeavor as well as Aeryon Labs and Prox Dynamics.

FLIR Systems, a leader in advanced sensing technology, won a $109 million Army contract for a ground robot to help Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams, the company's first big unmanned systems win since it acquired Endeavor Robotics for $382 million earlier this year.

FLIR's Kobra robot has been selected to serve as the Army's new Common Robotic System - Heavy (CRS-H) vehicle.

This unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) can climb over obstacles, lift up to 330 pounds, stretch to a height of more than 11 feett, and stow down for compact storage despite weighing over 700 lbs, according to FLIR.

FLIR's Kobra robot, the Army's new CRS-H vehicle

US Army

FLIR's Kobra robot, the Army's new CRS-H vehicle

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The Kobra as a CRS-H solution was developed with Army and soldier feedback. "Soldiers have been kicking the tires on this Kobra for the last year and a half," Joseph Ailinger, the director of public relations for FLIR's Government and Defense team, told Business Insider.

Delivery of 248 CRS-H vehicles is expected to begin in the third quarter of FY 2020, the Army revealed in its second robotics program of record contract announcement in two weeks. The Army recently awarded General Dynamics Land Systems a $162 million contract for 600 Small Multipurpose Equipment Transport vehicles, robotic mules to unburden soldiers.

David Ray, the head of FLIR's Government and Defense team, told Business Insider the win validated the decision to buy Endeavor. "The CRS-H is the first of many programs we hope to win as part of this acquisition," Ray said.

Endeavor won a $158.5 million Army contract two years ago to deliver a Man Transportable Robotic System Increment II (MTRS Inc II) solution. The Centaur UGV, now a FLIR program, is serving in this capacity.

FLIR Centaur UGV equipped with modular Black Hornet drone launcher

Ryan Pickrell/Business Insider

FLIR Centaur UGV equipped with modular Black Hornet drone launcher

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At the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) conference held in Washington, DC in October, FLIR showed off a variant of the Centaur that could field Black Hornet drones, a FLIR rotary wing unmanned aerial system (UAS) developed by Prox Dynamics, which FLIR acquired in 2016 for $134 million.

The Army started fielding Black Hornet drones earlier this year.

FLIR is starting to emerge as a prominent player in the small and mid-sized unmanned systems space as a result of its acquisition of Prox Dynamics in 2016, Aeryon Labs for $200 million in January, and Endeavor in March.

"We wanted to go from just building world-class sensors, which FLIR is really good at, to moving more into the solutions business, opportunities where we could vertically integrate," Ray explained to Business Insider.

"Through a series of strategy discussions across the business, it quickly became apparent that one of the areas we thought we could excel would be in the unmanned space."

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FLIR Black Hornet III

FLIR Systems

FLIR Black Hornet III

"If you look at how our military customers buy, they buy by platform," Ray told Business Insider.

Rather than remain beholden to the larger Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), platform producers, FLIR decided to expand in order to "bring customers integrated solutions as opposed to products that have to be integrated into other systems," Ray explained.

"Sensing has become such an important part of everything on the battlefield. That's where our strength was. So, how could we combine word-class products from a hardware and platform perspective with the sensing capability we had? We saw that come together for us in the small unmanned space."

FLIR is currently looking at a variety of unmanned systems.

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At AUSA, FLIR, in partnership with Textron Systems and its subsidiary Howe & Howe Technologies, unveiled the Ripsaw M5, a potential solution for the light and medium variants of the Army's Robotic Combat Vehicle.

Ripsaw M5

Ryan Pickrell/Business Insider

Ripsaw M5

Functioning like a drone mothership, the unmanned Ripsaw M5 has the ability to deploy other unmanned assets, including FLIR's R80D SkyRaider and SUGV, drones developed by Aeryon and Endeavor and equipped with FLIR sensors.

FLIR is currently exploring similar opportunities for robotic surface ships and larger aerial drones, the aim being the creation of combat and reconnaissance systems that can carry multiple vehicles for enhanced surveillance.

The company, as part of its efforts to create an open plug-and-play architecture, is working on a common controller that can not only be used across multiple platforms to make training and maintenance easier, but can also allow a single user to control more than one unmanned system at a time. "We want one plus one to equal ten," Ray said.

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"FLIR as a whole will continue to be inquisitive," he told Business Insider, explaining that the company aims to continue to grow exponentially and make progress on its four pillars: sensors, decision support, airborne ISR, and unmanned systems.

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