27 January 2010 – VEGA Consulting
Services Limited (VEGA), a Finmeccanica company, has announced a
new contract award from the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) worth in
excess of £2m that will see VEGA support the Maritime Composite
Training Systems (MCTS) programme for the next five years.
The MCTS programme delivers warfare
operator career training for all the principal classes of Royal
Navy warships, including the new Type 45 destroyer, providing both
generic and platform-specific training in a fully synthetic
environment. Additionally it provides a shore-based continuation
training capability for platform warfare teams, enabling them to
participate in realistic synthetic exercises to maintain their
operational skills.
In the first phase of the programme,
training is undertaken in two reconfigurable shore-based training
facilities, located near Portsmouth and at Devonport,
inter-connected via a secure link. The facility is also capable of
interoperating in synthetic exercises with other UK and coalition
training facilities. Future MCTS phases will evolve to offer
collective training linking with warships alongside as well as
those at sea.
Under the terms of the contract awarded
by the UK MOD’s Maritime Training Systems Output Business Unit (MTS
OBU), VEGA will provide a full-time, onsite team to deliver ongoing
technical support to the MCTS programme. The contract continues
VEGA’s long-standing relationship with the MTS OBU and the Maritime
Warfare School (MWS). The company has provided the UK MOD with
independent technical support of legacy maritime warfare operator
and team trainers since 1990.
The new contract takes effect from
January 2010 and will run for five years with an option for a
further two years support.
MCTS Project Manager, Jon Havard,
commented: “We are extremely happy to extend our working
relationship with VEGA. Their collective experience of the MCTS
programme and of the Royal Navy’s specific warfare training
requirements, means that we are always guaranteed the highest
quality technical support.”
VEGA Managing Director, Paul MacGregor,
said: “VEGA is recognised for its trusted and expert advice in the
delivery of effective, through-life capability. We are therefore
delighted to be continuing our successful involvement with the MCTS
programme. The expertise of the VEGA team is helping secure the
future evolution of warfare training at a time when operational
effectiveness is of paramount importance.”
Further
information
For further information, please contact
Mark Gunning on mark.gunning@vega.co.uk.