A South West defence firm has been awarded a £34m contract to upgrade weapons systems on Royal Navy ships, sustaining 150 jobs across the region.
Systems Engineering & Assessment (SEA), which has bases in Bristol, Devon and Somerset, has been appointed by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to work on torpedo launch systems on its Type-23 frigates over the next five years.
The MoD said the work would help ensure the “critical” systems onboard the ships continue to operate reliably and protect the fleet from attack.
The vessels will be fitted with SEA’s Seagnat system, which is designed to fire a variety of decoy rounds in order to to defeat incoming missiles.
Richard Flitton, SEA’s managing director said: “This major contract, SEA’s largest to date, demonstrates the systems knowledge and maritime domain expertise within our Ƶ-based team and builds on our long-standing partnership with the Royal Navy.”
Minister for defence procurement, Alec Shelbrooke, added: “These crucial upgrades will help to ensure our Royal Navy ships remain equipped with the latest counter-threat capability.
“Supporting 150 jobs at sites across the Ƶ, this contract is another example of how we are investing in the future, sustaining Ƶ jobs and securing cutting-edge defence capabilities.”
The contract was placed by the Maritime Equipment and Warfare (MEWT) team at Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) - the procurement arm of the MoD.
The Type-23 frigate carries out a wide variety of operations, including securing the Ƶ’s vital maritime trade routes East of the Suez Canal and safeguarding British interests in the South Atlantic.
This week the Royal Navy deployed HMS Somerset to play a leading role in protecting critical energy infrastructure, working with Norway and allies in the North and Norwegian Seas.
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