The Army has tapped Leonardo DRS to demonstrate its On-Board Vehicle Power (OBVP) generator’s ability to meet increased power needs for vehicles that carry THAAD missile defense systems, the company said on Tuesday.

Leonardo received the $5 million Other Transaction Authority contract from the Army on June 29, and will demonstrate its OBVP capability on Army Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks (HEMTT) and Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) through the summer of 2020, Mike Mount, a Leonardo DRS spokesman, told Defense Daily.

The Army is looking for an OBVP capability that can meet electrical power system requirements for THAAD vehicles, including up to 55kW of usable power while on the move and 120kW while stationary.

“With the capability to generate power beyond the Army’s stated 120kW requirement, the system is ready and able to support mission command, command post, missile systems, maneuver SHORAD, directed energy systems and high energy laser programs; improving battlefield operations with highly reliable, mission assured power, anywhere and anytime,” Leonardo DRS officials said in a statement. “The Leonardo DRS OBVP system has proven it can increase battlefield agility, reduce deployment logistics costs, and improve mission readiness with no impact on vehicle functionality.”

Leonardo’s OBVP system, first developed in 2008, has previously been demonstrated on Stryker vehicles, Humvees and Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, according to Mount.  

“Leonardo DRS’ OBVP Technology enables rapid command post deployment [in] less than 30 minutes, enables early entry operations where speed and agility are key, provides mission assured power for directed energy weapons [and] enables power generation at every command echelon from dorps to company,” Mount said.

Allison Transmissions is also partnered with Leonardo to deliver OBVP systems based on their Allison 3200 SP transmission system, according to company officials.

“This proven system will provide our customers with a solution to address the growing electrical power gap affecting all military ground vehicle platforms,” Jerry Hathaway, vice president of DRS Land Electronics, said in a statement. “Leonardo DRS and our partner, Allison Transmission, have been long-time believers in OBVP technology.  We are very pleased with the leadership of the DoD, specifically the Army TARDEC, in demonstrating technology that can address the ground combat vehicle power gap.”