Pearson Engineering has furthered its contribution to British Army armoured vehicle programmes, with a contract from KNDS to manufacture Mission Modules for the British Army’s BOXER Mechanised Infantry Vehicle. The contract award means that BOXER, Challenger 3, and AJAX will all include key components manufactured at Armstrong Works, marking a return to strength for defence manufacturing in Newcastle. As a direct consequence, Pearson Engineering has recently announced over £5,000,000 in capital investments, to enhance manufacturing capability and capacity. Pearson Engineering’s scope of work is to provide Mission Module hulls for the Armoured Personnel Carrier variant, bringing together a wide range of skills and manufacturing services at Armstrong Works, provided together with daughter company, Responsive Engineering.
“This contract further strengthens our established relationships with KNDS, forged over many years and developed most recently through our work to supply Dry Support Bridge fabrications for export customers. Having contributed to the original BOXER campaign in the UK, we are pleased to officially join the BOXER team and to play our part in delivering next-generation capability to the users of this vehicle. Following a number of recent contract wins, we have a responsibility to deliver critical components and services to a range of UK armoured vehicle programmes. To ensure we meet our commitments, we are investing heavily in our people, our manufacturing capability, and our world-class facility, Armstrong Works,” said Richard Beatson, Business Development Director at Pearson Engineering.
“As Pearson continues to meet our rigorous requirements of providing the highest quality components and service levels, we are pleased to continue our partnership with them as part of our UK supply chain for the BOXER programme. This longstanding partnership demonstrates our commitment to a collaborative approach, supporting further investment in UK engineering and manufacturing,” said Ian Anderton, Managing Director of KNDS UK.
“The teams at both Pearson Engineering and Responsive Engineering take great pride in our significant contribution to these British Army vehicle programmes. We eagerly anticipate these platforms coming successfully into service,” said Craig Priday, Managing Director at Pearson Engineering.
The Boxer is a multirole armoured fighting vehicle designed by an international consortium to accomplish a number of operations through the use of installable mission modules. On 19 July the UK MoD disclosed its intent to order between 400 and 600 Boxers with options for a further 900, leading to a potential maximum procurement of 1500 vehicles. The first vehicles are currently due to enter service in 2023. The Boxer consists of two key elements: the platform/drive-line (the drive module) and the removable mission module. The mission module contains the mission-specific elements, such as weapons, equipment or crew. It is a key (and unique) feature of the Boxer. Mission modules are interchangeable pod-like units that are fitted to drive modules to form a complete mission variant vehicle. Mission modules are attached by four points and can be swapped within an hour under field conditions. The driver can access their compartment through the mission module or in an emergency via the large single-piece power-operated hatch above this position.
