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PRIVACY
Manufacturing

Devon defence jobs secured after British Army vehicle contract win

Combat vehicle manufacturer Supacat and engineering giant Babcock have struck a deal to make potentially hundreds of light armoured transporters at the firms' sites in Dunkeswell and Plymouth

Soldiers driving the High Mobility Transporter vehicle, known as 'The Jackal'(Image: Supacat)

Devon-based engineering firm Supacat has landed a major contract to manufacture potentially hundreds of combat vehicles for the British Army.

The company will collaborate with defence giant Babcock on the project to deliver at least 70 light armoured, high mobility transporters from its HMT 400 series, known by The Army as ‘The Jackal’.

Supacat said the programme could lead to as many as 240 of the vehicles being produced, “should operational requirements demand”.

Work will take place between Supacat’s manufacturing facilities at Dunkeswell near Honiton and Babcock’s Devonport site in Plymouth.

According to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) procurement arm Defence, Equipment and Support (DE&S), the deal is worth £90m, and will help to secure 10 jobs at Supacat and 90 at Babcock.

Originally developed in the 1990s, the Jackal is produced in 4x4, 6x6 and convertible ‘Extenda’ formats, and is used by specialist and other armed forces worldwide. Supacat said further export opportunities were “currently being explored” which could bring more investment into the South West.

Supacat said its latest contract would build its “well established” relationship with Babcock. The two firms assembled more than 600 vehicles in Devonport within a three-year period, which were used by British forces in Afghanistan.

Chief executive Nick Ames said: "This is an enormously important contract win for us. Primarily it further evidences our customer’s confidence in our HMT 400 product after 20 years of service. Furthermore it gives us a platform to secure potential export orders and thereby shows how investment in 海角视频 products can provide benefit to the wider 海角视频 economy. It also allows us to broaden and deepen our relationship with Babcock as a world class engineering partner.