UK MoD Awards Missile Scoring System Contract

Cambridge Consultants Limited (CCL®) has been awarded a contract by the UK MoD for the development and testing of a system to measure the terminal trajectory of a missile in its final phase of flight which can be installed on the smallest of airborne targets.

The requirement has arisen because modern missiles are becoming more agile and capable, and trials are becoming more expensive. Scoring systems, which are used to test missile performance, now need to be capable of meeting these needs with accurate 3-D terminal trajectory measurement on small, low-cost airborne targets.

Cambridge Consultants' scoring systems have been used by the RAF in the UK, and are in service in the United States. They will soon be introduced in other countries, including France and Australia.

The MoD contract was put out for competitive tender in late 1995, and was awarded to Cambridge Consultants at the end of 1996. The contract is worth over GBP800,000, and the development and ground testing of the system is expected to take about 14 months.

The system uses impulse radar to make the measurement. Cambridge Consultants has a long track record in the design of impulse radar and associated RF systems, having developed the Advanced Radar Missile Scorer (ARMS) - the world's first qualified radar vector scoring system. We had recognised the changing requirements for scoring systems prior to the MoD tender, and had already invested in our own internal development project, addressing the proof of principle and prototyping of a new system: SMART (Small ARMS for Reduced scale Targets).

This development drew on Cambridge Consultants' strengths in simplification and cost-reduction of electronic systems, as well as applying analytical and algorithmic skills to system development.

Notes for editors:

Cambridge Consultants develops breakthrough products, creates and licenses intellectual property, and provides business consultancy in technology critical issues for clients worldwide. For over 50 years, the company has been helping its clients turn business opportunities into commercial successes, whether they are launching first-to-market products, entering new markets or expanding existing markets through the introduction of new technologies. With a team of over 300 engineers, designers, scientists and consultants, in offices in Cambridge (UK) and Boston (USA), Cambridge Consultants offers solutions across a diverse range of industries including medical technology, industrial and consumer products, transport, energy, cleantech and wireless communications.

Created by three Cambridge graduates in 1960, the company has grown into a leading technology business, renowned worldwide for its ability to solve technical problems and provide innovative, practical solutions to commercial issues. In 2009, the company was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade, and in 2011 was awarded a second Queen's Award, this time for Innovation. For more information visit: www.CambridgeConsultants.com

Cambridge Consultants is part of Altran, global leader in innovation and high-tech engineering consulting. Altran supports companies in the creation and development of their new products and services. For thirty years, the Group has been providing services to key players in the fields of Aerospace, Automotive, Energy, Railways, Finance, Healthcare, and Telecoms. Present at every stage of project development from new-technology strategic planning through to manufacturing, Altran is able to capitalise on its expertise in four key domains: Product Lifecycle Management, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering & Embedded Systems and IT Systems. With a global network of 17,000 collaborators (including 15,000 consultants) and 500 major clients throughout the world, the Group reported sales of €1,420m in 2011. More info: www.altran.com

For further information:

Cambridge Consultants

Patrick Pordage
Marketing Communications Director
Tel: +44 1223 420024
Patrick.Pordage@CambridgeConsultants.com