Birdon America, Inc. announced today that its contract to provide Bridge Erection Boats (BEBs) to the Royal Netherlands Army (Koninklijke Landmacht) is progressing on schedule, with six Birdon BEBs in the final stages of assembly with delivery scheduled for the end of September. Awarded in 2023 to General Dynamics European Land Systems (GDELS), the contract is for three sets of Wide Gap Crossing systems, composed of the Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB), Bridge Adapter Pallets (BAP), and Birdon BEBs. This is the first of three delivery tranches that will be completed in 2024-2025. In addition to first tranche delivery, the full Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) package – including technical manuals and training programs – is nearing completion. Birdon will use this package to conduct training for the Netherlands Armed Forces to safely and effectively operate the BEBs. The training is set to take place in the Netherlands in the first quarter of 2025. In preparation for the upcoming delivery, Birdon hosted a meeting in July with personnel from the Netherlands Army’s Contract and Program team and the GDELS Program Management team to verify the progress of boats currently in production and finalize the quality inspection and delivery process.
“We’re proud to supply the BEB as an essential force multiplier for the Netherlands Army,” said BEB Program Manager Jim Ducker. “These vessels play a pivotal role in enabling vitally important wet gap crossings, and this first delivery indicates contract completion is progressing in a timely manner.”
During the meeting, Birdon also performed a sea trial on the first boat – hull number 007.Birdon has established a successful track record designing and manufacturing BEBs for the Australian, Brazilian, and U.S. Armies. Globally, Birdon has delivered 462 BEBs, the bulk of which have been manufactured in its production facility in northeast Denver. The Netherlands BEBs, which are being manufactured in Denver, will feature increased capabilities to improve operations and further ruggedize the BEB including an icebreaker bow, new quick release launch capability, electric winch, and reduced maintenance and downtime upgrades for maximal operational availability. The Netherlands BEBs will include updated systems that enable ease of integration for developing technologies. In its primary mission mode, the BEB provides propulsion, thrust, and stabilization to support worldwide tactical float bridging and rafting operations.
It is specifically designed to provide high thrust and operate in high particulate matter environments including in fresh, brackish, and seawater. All functions of the BEB can be performed by a two-person crew. The unique and flexible design of the BEB means it can integrate with most customer-specific transport systems. Production of the BEB in Birdon’s Denver facility has peaked at seven vessels per month with a boat coming off the production line every 3 business days. Due to our strict configuration management, quality and parts kitting controls, every BEB is identical. All vessels undergo full quality and acceptance tests by Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) and the end-user. Since contract award in 2013, Birdon has achieved a 100% on time delivery record and has received the highest possible Customer Performance Assessment Reviews (CPARS) ratings of “Exceptional” for the three key measurements of Quality, Schedule, and Management.
