Thales, through its fully owned subsidiary Omnisys, a Brazilian technology company based in São Bernardo do Campo, has delivered the first batch of SOTAS intercom systems to equip Brazilian Army Urutu vehicles for missions in Haiti, VBTP-MR Guarani and M113 armoured personnel carriers.
“This is an important contract, mainly because it’s the result of a national tender in which Thales in the Netherlands has transferred all the necessary technologies to Omnisys in line with the Brazilian government’s strategy to develop its national defence industry,” says Laurent Mourre, Thales Country Director for Brazil.
The Brazilian Army’s Commander of Communications and Electronic Warfare, Gen. Antonino dos Santos Guerra Neto, stated that the SOTAS system has been tested in a range of operational situations and has met CCOMGEX’s stringent requirements in every respect.
“We are delighted about this contract award for the supply of the intercom systems for our military vehicles,” said General dos Santos Guerra Neto. “Having a Brazilian company involved in the manufacturing process is a source of great pride. As a result, Brazilian engineers are learning state-of-the-art technologies, which is good for our defence industry and its future development. We are also very pleased with the way this contract is executed in collaboration with the Brazilian Army.”
SOTAS is a complete vehicle communication solution for the digital battlespace. It comprises routers, crew stations and other elements and modules as part of a complete range of products. SOTAS is based on a flexible architecture and forms an integrated end-to-end information and communication network for shared situation awareness at all levels of command, from operations room to infantry in the field. Thanks to its inherently modular, open-ended design, it can be readily adapted and extended at any time, with no disruption to the initial installation.
The contract between the Thales subsidiary and the Centro de Comunicações e Guerra Eletrônica do Exército (CCOMGEX / Army Communications and Electronic Warfare Centre) was signed in September 2011. It marks the effective launch of the SOTAS solution on the Brazilian market, where total demand is estimated at around 3,000 units.
