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Does anyone have an account on Allstocks? I need a favor.
Funding bill passed.
Motley Fool recommended us a 9 out of 10.. big following too.
Force Protection: Strong, Silent, Superb
By Rich Smith
May 18, 2007
A long time ago, in a high school far away, a good friend taught me a new word when he accused me of being "laconic." Upon grabbing a dictionary to find out just what the heck he was talking about (and whether I should be offended), I decided I liked it.
Derived from the Greek "Lakonikos," which refers to the Lacedaemon region of Greece from which the legendary Spartans hailed, the word is usually defined as "speaking with Spartan terseness."
What the heck are you talking about?
That's a roundabout way of giving military manufacturer Force Protection (Nasdaq: FRPT) the following backhanded compliment. Appropriately for a member of the warrior caste, the firm released a laconic Q1 2007 earnings report. It contained neither cash flow statement, nor balance sheet, nor income statement -- just a bare four paragraphs of text, followed by a suggestion that investors go to the SEC's website for further details.
You see, Force Protection is what we call a "story stock." People who own it, love it. They love it for its mission: producing unique armored vehicles that seem impervious to Iraqi improvised explosive devices (IEDs). They love it for its prospects, including contracts in conjunction with firms like General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) and Armor Holding (NYSE: AH) to produce "Cougar" and "Buffalo" armored vehicles for the U.S. military, "Mastiffs" for Britain's warfighters, and potentially thousands of armored vehicles for the still-nascent Iraqi Defense Forces.
What they don't necessarily love it for, or even pay attention to, or demand that their company detail in its actual earnings releases, are the numbers that show how much money this investment is earning for them.
Those who want to look behind the story are kindly directed to the SEC's website for such picky little details. There, you'll find that, year over year:
Force Protection grew its quarterly sales 188%, and its cost of goods sold 178%.
It more than tripled its gross profit, as gross margin rose 280 basis points to 21.8%.
Operating margin grew 220 basis points to 2.5% even as general and administrative costs rose nearly as fast as sales, and the firm septupled its spending on research and development.
Insatiable demand for its products held inventory growth to a mere 62%, and accounts receivable growth to just 22%.
With a story as good as the one Force Protection tells, it seems investors are willing to take the company on faith, to accept its laconic press releases, and to not demand that it make it easier to find the numbers that prove their faith well-founded.
More's the pity. Because this story sounds even better in numbers than it does in words.
Institutional ownership is now 64%.. was 50% on Monday.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15837275?q=frpt
Perhaps the worst stock of 2007?
You didn't say you bought at $14 until we were back at $18 you lying sack of crap.
Yep.
CEUT updated target for FRPT to $32.
Relax.
Wall Street Journal - Full Article - Very Favorable For FRPT
Armored-Vehicle Builders
Compete for Bigger Payday
By GREG JAFFE, JONATHAN KARP and REBECCA CHRISTIE
May 14, 2007; Page A3
As demand soars for more heavily armored vehicles in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army is pushing to turn a crowded multibillion-dollar competition for the next generation of troop transports into something closer to a winner-take-all event, a senior Army official said.
The shift, if made, would make it more likely that one or two companies would grab the lion's share of a much bigger payday.
NEW ARMOR
• What's New: The Pentagon plans to buy far more of a new armored vehicle that is headed for Iraq.
• What's at Stake: A multibillion-dollar contract to build as many as 17,700 vehicles during the next few years.
• What's Next: The Pentagon must decide how many kinds of vehicles it wants to buy and how many contractors it wants to build them, offering a select few defense contractors a big windfall.
Until recently the Army and Marines planned to buy only about 7,700 Mine-Resistant, Ambush Protected vehicles, which are better able to withstand blasts from roadside bombs than the current armored Humvees, for about $8.4 billion. The continuing death toll from roadside bombs in Iraq, however, led U.S. Central Command to say that it now needs as many as 17,700 vehicles -- enough to ensure that every soldier who leaves the base in Iraq is riding in one of them.
So far, nine companies have been selected to each build four test vehicles. The Marine Corps, which is overseeing the program, had planned to choose multiple winners from the various test vehicles submitted. Army and Marine Corps officials were meeting last week to decide how to address the growing demand for the vehicles in Iraq in the quickest and most efficient way, Pentagon officials said.
Now that the Pentagon is planning on buying many more of the vehicles, Army officials say they would like to see one primary design. That would make the vehicle much easier to maintain, a big plus in Iraq where troops are scattered among many outposts.
"If you have four different vehicles, that means you have to have four different logistics systems to provide parts. You have to train soldiers how to fight from four different vehicles. It becomes very expensive and complex," the senior Army official said.
Some industry officials, however, play down the differences among the vehicles, saying the various moving parts most prone to failure are similar across the various vehicle designs. So do Marine Corps program managers.
The Army, likely to buy the largest number of the new vehicles, hasn't said what its plans are. It had planned to buy about 2,500 of them. But officials say they are now almost certain to buy substantially more. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is a driving force behind the shift. "My concern is that the rate of production is nowhere near what it needs to be," he said last week.
One big question is how quickly industry can produce the V-shaped vehicle bodies that better deflect bomb blasts. The urgency for such vehicles is so great that within weeks of awarding the small demonstrator-model contracts to nine companies in January, the Pentagon ordered more vehicles from five of them.
The surge in demand has forced the smaller players, such as Force Protection Inc., to team up with major vehicle producers to increase production. In partnership with General Dynamics Corp., Force Protection recently won a contract worth nearly $500 million to build 1,000 MRAP vehicles. The Ladson, S.C., company, which is also under contract to build 80 bigger MRAP vehicles on its own, made just 300 vehicles last year. But Mike Aldrich, vice president of business development and government relations, said the Force Protection-General Dynamics joint venture could produce more than 10,000 MRAP vehicles by the end of 2008. "What's holding us back is a substantial order," he said.
General Dynamics, better known for its Stryker troop carriers and Abrams tanks, also is competing separately for MRAP vehicles. Another big player is BAE Systems PLC, which last week agreed to buy rival Armor Holdings Inc. to bolster its bid for the MRAP competition and the eventual race to build a successor to the Humvee. Oshkosh Truck Corp. has also entered the fray. The remaining contenders are smaller companies, highlighting the challenge facing the Pentagon in that the nation's industrial base for such vehicles is small and fragmented. One heavy-hitter that has already been ruled out for further MRAP orders is Textron Inc., according to the company.
The Pentagon had been seeking three sizes of MRAP vehicle. Force Protection, whose models already are deployed in Iraq, is competing for all three classes with models ranging from about $500,000 to $850,000 per vehicle.
The MRAP vehicles are larger and more expensive than the current generation of armored Humvees. Initially the MRAP was seen as an interim solution until a replacement for the Humvee could was built in the 2012 timeframe. "It could be that this program is morphing into the replacement for the Humvee," says Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute, a Washington think tank.
Write to Greg Jaffe at greg.jaffe@wsj.com, Jonathan Karp at jonathan.karp@wsj.com and Rebecca Christie at rebecca.christie@dowjones.com
This isn't OTC so stop worrying. This is the next GOOG.
Yeah, shorts threw in the towel today. Capitulation. They'll be back when we hit $30.
Cramer pumping FRPT finally!
Two Mine-Resistant Vehicle Stocks to Ride
By Jim Cramer
RealMoney.com Columnist
5/10/2007 11:58 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by Jim Cramer
Do not underestimate momentum. The momentum I am seeing in Force Protection (FRPT - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) and in Spartan Motors (SPAR - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating), off the mine-resistant vehicles (they are both suppliers) is very similar to what I saw in Ceradyne (CRDN - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) last year when I got behind that one with a vengeance.
Like Force Protection and Spartan, Ceradyne became a hot-button in Congress because it made body armor and we were very short body armor for our troops.
Many of you are concerned that you may have "missed" the move in both of these stocks. I think that Ceradyne says you haven't. From April 2005 to February 2006, Ceradyne went from $18 to $62. The whole time, all it did was get contract after contract as the military and Congress wanted to show they cared.
Throughout the run, the shorts swarmed. They were all overwhelmed. They tried it again recently, and again they were overwhelmed.
I am saying right now that mine-resistant vehicles will be the easiest campaign issue and the easiest way to show you care about the troops, because the deaths from the fatal combination of endless improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, and the weak chassis of U.S. military vehicles simply can't be tolerated by the military -- or politicians.
The Ceradyne history says that you are going to get a triple in these stocks. Ceradyne's more of a pure play than Spartan because of its RV business, but it is just like Force Protection.
So, when you consider shorting or getting off, remember Ceradyne and stay in the game.
Cramer officially pumping FRPT - going to $60 he says!
Two Mine-Resistant Vehicle Stocks to Ride
By Jim Cramer
RealMoney.com Columnist
5/10/2007 11:58 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by Jim Cramer
Do not underestimate momentum. The momentum I am seeing in Force Protection (FRPT - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) and in Spartan Motors (SPAR - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating), off the mine-resistant vehicles (they are both suppliers) is very similar to what I saw in Ceradyne (CRDN - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) last year when I got behind that one with a vengeance.
Like Force Protection and Spartan, Ceradyne became a hot-button in Congress because it made body armor and we were very short body armor for our troops.
Many of you are concerned that you may have "missed" the move in both of these stocks. I think that Ceradyne says you haven't. From April 2005 to February 2006, Ceradyne went from $18 to $62. The whole time, all it did was get contract after contract as the military and Congress wanted to show they cared.
Throughout the run, the shorts swarmed. They were all overwhelmed. They tried it again recently, and again they were overwhelmed.
I am saying right now that mine-resistant vehicles will be the easiest campaign issue and the easiest way to show you care about the troops, because the deaths from the fatal combination of endless improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, and the weak chassis of U.S. military vehicles simply can't be tolerated by the military -- or politicians.
The Ceradyne history says that you are going to get a triple in these stocks. Ceradyne's more of a pure play than Spartan because of its RV business, but it is just like Force Protection.
So, when you consider shorting or getting off, remember Ceradyne and stay in the game.
Cramer pumping FRPT - going to $60!!
Two Mine-Resistant Vehicle Stocks to Ride
By Jim Cramer
RealMoney.com Columnist
5/10/2007 11:58 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by Jim Cramer
Do not underestimate momentum. The momentum I am seeing in Force Protection (FRPT - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) and in Spartan Motors (SPAR - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating), off the mine-resistant vehicles (they are both suppliers) is very similar to what I saw in Ceradyne (CRDN - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) last year when I got behind that one with a vengeance.
Like Force Protection and Spartan, Ceradyne became a hot-button in Congress because it made body armor and we were very short body armor for our troops.
Many of you are concerned that you may have "missed" the move in both of these stocks. I think that Ceradyne says you haven't. From April 2005 to February 2006, Ceradyne went from $18 to $62. The whole time, all it did was get contract after contract as the military and Congress wanted to show they cared.
Throughout the run, the shorts swarmed. They were all overwhelmed. They tried it again recently, and again they were overwhelmed.
I am saying right now that mine-resistant vehicles will be the easiest campaign issue and the easiest way to show you care about the troops, because the deaths from the fatal combination of endless improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, and the weak chassis of U.S. military vehicles simply can't be tolerated by the military -- or politicians.
The Ceradyne history says that you are going to get a triple in these stocks. Ceradyne's more of a pure play than Spartan because of its RV business, but it is just like Force Protection.
So, when you consider shorting or getting off, remember Ceradyne and stay in the game.
Cramer on board.
Two Mine-Resistant Vehicle Stocks to Ride
By Jim Cramer
RealMoney.com Columnist
5/10/2007 11:58 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by Jim Cramer
Do not underestimate momentum. The momentum I am seeing in Force Protection (FRPT - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) and in Spartan Motors (SPAR - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating), off the mine-resistant vehicles (they are both suppliers) is very similar to what I saw in Ceradyne (CRDN - commentary - Cramer's Take - Rating) last year when I got behind that one with a vengeance.
Like Force Protection and Spartan, Ceradyne became a hot-button in Congress because it made body armor and we were very short body armor for our troops.
Many of you are concerned that you may have "missed" the move in both of these stocks. I think that Ceradyne says you haven't. From April 2005 to February 2006, Ceradyne went from $18 to $62. The whole time, all it did was get contract after contract as the military and Congress wanted to show they cared.
Throughout the run, the shorts swarmed. They were all overwhelmed. They tried it again recently, and again they were overwhelmed.
I am saying right now that mine-resistant vehicles will be the easiest campaign issue and the easiest way to show you care about the troops, because the deaths from the fatal combination of endless improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, and the weak chassis of U.S. military vehicles simply can't be tolerated by the military -- or politicians.
The Ceradyne history says that you are going to get a triple in these stocks. Ceradyne's more of a pure play than Spartan because of its RV business, but it is just like Force Protection.
So, when you consider shorting or getting off, remember Ceradyne and stay in the game.
Sec.gov
They are filing late... 5 days. The date was supposed to be today.
TXT officially out as MRAP competitor. That's 2 POS companies gone (GPV the other one).
Textron Sees Continued Strong Demand for Armored Security Vehicle
Tuesday May 8, 2:21 pm ET
PROVIDENCE, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Based on current and pending U.S. Department of Defense budget requests, Textron Systems Corporation, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT - News) company, expects to deliver about 530 of its highly successful Armored Security Vehicle (ASV) units in 2007 and at least as many next year. The outlook for ASV production remains strong despite recent notification from the U.S. Marine Corps that the company will not be receiving any additional delivery orders for the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle (MRAP) program.
consideration for the U.S. Marine program.
Guaranteed buyout now.. either by GD or LMT. See you at $38 PPS in about, 4 months.
You're right. The problem is hedge funds who use offshore brokerage companies.. they are unregulated and can create fake shares without clearing them with the DTC.
Well, no. That's why the SHO list was created. Right now, FRPT has failed to delivers up to 13 days out... eventually, brokers should reconcile but you know how the market works.
Shorting is fine, however, when people naked short, it shows on the SHO list.
What don't you understand? And no offense, but you're a asst. mod on investment board but you don't understand shorting a stock?
It's official, we are on the SHO list.
Shorts must be getting desperate as now every single one of them has no profits, and most are underwater. This is the final piece of the puzzle to create a real short squeeze.
http://www.nasdaqtrader.com/aspx/regsho.aspx
Mods - Tina, how about earning your keep as an asst. mod and updating the board? The front page doesn't even show a picture of a Cheetah.. or are you just here to delete my posts?
Exactly, and that's what worries me.
Earnings will be announced May 15.
You have to understand something about Frank's sales... he's not an employee of FRPT, he's a venture capitalist. He's not listed on the website, and he's makes NO decisions. Hell, he doesn't even live in South Carolina or go there. He is basically the Director of the Board. He gets NO salary.. the only way he makes money on his ventures is to get a sh1t load of stock, rebuild the company, and then sell.
I'm more concerned when McGilton sells... not Frank.
Haven't sold one share since $3.
In case you didn't know, it's down today because the CEO sold 750K shares.
Marines, Army to Demonstrate MRAP for Key Staff on Capitol Hill
April 12, 2007 -- The Army and Marine Corps are set to provide a day of VIP briefings for key congressional staff members at Aberdeen Test Center in Maryland, demonstrating for them how the military is testing new armored vehicles that promise to provide improved protection against roadside bombs to personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The one-day event is set to include classified briefings on the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle program as well as live-fire demonstrations being conducted as part of a six-week regime to evaluate how well prototype MRAP vehicles protect against a range of attacks, according to a congressional source and a defense official.
Congress has played a key role in strongly supporting this new-start program, pledging funds to build as many as possible even before the Defense Department formalizes a MRAP requirement -- which is intended as a stopgap to a humvee replacement.
The Marine Corps and Navy launched the MRAP effort last fall with $765 million drawn from the fiscal year 2006 allocations and the fiscal year 2007 bridge supplemental. By February, interest in MRAP was growing, and the Army, Air Force and U.S. Special Operations Command joined the Navy and Marine Corps in advancing requests in the main FY-07 emergency supplemental spending bill totaling $1.8 billion, according to Marine Corps briefing slides on the program.
The sum of these two requests, $2.5 billion, left the Marine Corps -- which is managing the MRAP acquisition for all of the services -- $1.5 billion short of what the service last month said it required in FY-07.
The Senate, following the lead of Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE), last month adopted an amendment to that chamber’s version of the FY-07 emergency supplemental spending package adding $1.5 billion for as many of the MRAP vehicles as U.S. industry can provide, which would allow for the accelerated fielding of 2,500 vehicles.
This provision is set to be considered when the House and Senate reconcile their respective versions of the FY-07 emergency spending bill. Its fate, however, remains uncertain; President Bush has threatened to veto the spending bill over provisions that would set deadlines for U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq.
Still, in the wake of the strong support, Marine Corps officials have invited professional staff members from the House Armed Services Committee, the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee to visit Aberdeen.
Testers at the Maryland facility are examining seven of the nine MRAP prototypes on hand. They are putting the armored vehicles through a six-week regimen of automotive and survivability tests that will be followed by a limited user evaluation. Based on the results of these tests, Marine Corps acquisition officials plan to award more production contracts as soon as early May in a bid to ramp up production and deliver thousands of the vehicles to Iraq by year’s end.
The Joint Staff is considering a requirement for 7,774 MRAP vehicles, which the Marine Corps estimates could cost as much as $8.4 billion over two years. -- Jason Sherman
Date: April 12, 2007
© Inside Washington Publishers
Presentation Summary
Think we did get some really good pieces of information here:
• COO, CFO, Public Relations: Presenting
• Current production: 100/month
• Stock outstanding: 67 million
• Warrant and options: Under 900,000
• First mover advantage and proven technology
• Increase in foreign military demand
• Blast range purchase: Replicate new technologies used by the enemy and test against vehicles.
• Relationships:
• GD – True joint venture (non populated). Split requests between the two companies. Joint Marketing. Have an office in Virginia next to pentagon.
• AH: Dedicated to MRAP. Integration and automotive.
• Spartan: Contracts only. Good relationship. Replicated Spartan lines in AH as well as in the Ladson plant. Able to work without Spartan eventually.
• BAE: Tacom deal for ILAV. FRPT and BAE split production only. No revenues for field support or spares goes to BAE.
• 3 classes of vehicles
• Buffalo – first developed vehicle
• Cougar – Many variants. MRAP variant production is being ramped up. Orders for MRAP should come in last Q2.
• Cheetah – Currently in 2nd generation. 24 of them. Complete validation and move into production in late summer. No current contracts. Expect to receive contracts for JLTV and MRAP Cat I. Also receiving foreign military interest. Additional production capacity should be available for late summer. CAT I buyer has requested production capacity for this vehicle. Intention to put Cheetah into production immediately after verification and validation has been completed that systems in the vehicle work. MMPV solicitation 3rd or 4th week of April. Gets all the attention as the Cheetah is a replacement for the Humvee. “This vehicle will meet this requirement head on.” Did extremely well in the rodeo. This vehicle can handle many applications. Believe that initial production will be 200 vehicles per month, which FPRT expects to be purchased. Expect to ramp up to 400 vehicles for month, with demand still exceeding that supply.
• Mastiff: Additional orders expected.
• ILAV: Additional orders expected.
• Buffalos: Sole sourced. More contracts expected.
• Missed employee numbers (?????)
• 82,000 sq. ft. warehouse for received, distribution and storage of materials. Will store spares. Will free up production space. Should be completed in June.
• Bought 60,000 sq. ft. facility in Summerville for R&D. Space currently used for R&D will be added to production of Buffalos.
• “The darn things work”
• Will be applying for additional patents.
• Expected 2007 revenue: Should easily reach $600-700 million.
• Did not need the strategic alliances for reputation of those companies. Not technology and not capacity (don’t believe that FRPT did not need their capacity).
• Anything FRPT can do to get their vehicles into the hands into the soldiers hands, they will do it, without being stupid.
• Sale of the company: Will not do anything stupid.
• MRAP competition: Supply base saw a spike. Do not know what the real demand is. There is a 6 month lag between the order and the delivery. FRPT has placed orders for the long lag material items. FRPT has had to fight for supply of materials. With GD, who has a mature materials organizations, FRPT is able to obtain better performance terms and pricing, especially for high price tag items. Meeting with GD today in Ladson to go through risk items and remove some of the waste in their purchases.
• IP: What FRPT has and if the government will take the design? FRPT has not asked for developmental monies. Therefore, FRPT owns all of its own technology. As long as FRPT continues to increase its capacity, they do not expect the government to take their technology. The IP portfolio that FRPT owns is defendable. The IP from South Africa has not historically been patented. IP portfolio is growing.
• Question regarding expectations given Iraq war: Pollard does not have concern with an ending war. He believes this conflict will continue. He believes orders will continue whether or not troops are recalled from Iraq. At minimum, Pollard believes vehicles will need to be replaced if troops return from Iraq. JLTV platform will go on whether or not Iraq war ends. Of the 5 categories, the 3 FRPT product offerings meet the requirements very well.
• First vehicles to testing by roughly 5 weeks. The vehicles have already passed the testing. Pollard have not heard good reports about the other vehicles. FRPT will not be deterred by what the other vehicles do. FRPT believes the military needs vehicles with Common (missed the rest – COTS). Brogan has increased requirements significantly. FRPT can not meet 7,700 vehicles by the end of the year.
• Logistics: About Spartan. It is probably not bad to have the military leader have his home state in the same state as Spartan. As a percentage, Spartan will not handle 100% of services they offer. AH is better because vehicles can be sold right out of Sealy, TX. Spartan does have another facility in the Carolinas in discussions for dedicated FRPT production.
Suntrust Overview part II:
Cheetah - for MRAP I and JLTV!!!
Suntrust overview:
100 vehicles last month,
ILAV - 85% completed,
Mastiff - 75% completed,
Replicating SPAR's work (making Chassis)
JERRV - completed
More room for MRAP.
Cheetah - to be sold to foreign markets and to Homeland Security.
At least 50%, if not up to 70%.
Read this part from the Bloomberg article - "Three companies received extensions and the final one is under review to see if it can meet requirements."
Who is still under review??? It's either GD, NAV or OSK/PVI. Those are the 3 that are still under extenstion, by the way...
FRPT and BAE are in.
Another important quote - "A fourth company said it's no longer sure if it can meet requirements for the vehicle and that contract is under review, Landis said without identifying the company."
NAV? Or PVI/OSK? One of those is out!
Navistar, Four Others Deliver Blast-Proof Trucks to Marines
2007-04-04 17:19 (New York)
By Edmond Lococo
April 4 (Bloomberg) -- Navistar International Corp., which
is vying for blast-resistant truck contracts from the U.S.
military valued at up to $8.4 billion, was one of five companies
to deliver test vehicles to the U.S. Marines on time.
Nine companies were given awards in January to provide
prototypes by March 27, and five met the goal, Captain Jeffrey
Landis, a U.S. Marine Corps spokesman, said today. Three
companies received extensions and the final one is under review
to see if it can meet requirements, Landis said, without
identifying the companies. Navistar spokesman Roy Wiley said his
company was one of those that delivered.
The U.S. military's requirement for blast-resistant trucks
to protect troops in Iraq and Afghanistan has increased to more
than 7,700 vehicles from an estimate of 6,738 vehicles in
February, the Marine Corps said yesterday. The Defense
Department is rushing the new trucks to Iraq because improvised
explosives accounted for 56 percent of the 2,607 U.S. combat
fatalities as of March 24, and 49 percent of all injuries.
``Our first vehicle was blown up in a test at the Army's
Aberdeen Proving Ground three weeks ago and from all indications
it was a very successful test,'' Navistar's Wiley said in a
phone interview.
All the trucks being designed improve crew safety with a
raised chassis and a V-shaped hull, which deflects explosive
force better than flat-bottomed vehicles.
The Marine Corps, which is overseeing the truck program for
the U.S. military, gave orders to the nine companies for a total
of 36 test vehicles valued at $34.6 million. With full
production, purchases through next year could total $8.4
billion, the Marines said yesterday.
Navistar Subsidiary
Warrenville, Illinois-based Navistar, the world's fourth-
largest truckmaker, is competing for the work through a
subsidiary called International Military and Government LLC.
Other companies that confirmed they delivered their test
vehicles include Force Protection Inc. in Ladson, South
Carolina, and London-based BAE Systems Plc.
``Our vehicles were delivered a full 30 days ahead of
schedule, and stand ready to continue to support future'' bomb-
resistant truck requirements, said Force Protection Vice
President Michael Aldrich. Landis of the Marines said three
companies had delivered earlier than the deadline, without
identifying them.
BAE shipped four vehicles ``in a timeframe agreeable to the
customer,'' spokesman Herb Muktarian said, without giving a
date.
10-Day Extensions
Landis said two suppliers had received 10-day extensions,
while a third company would deliver its truck by April 26. A
fourth company said it's no longer sure if it can meet
requirements for the vehicle and that contract is under review,
Landis said without identifying the company.
``The whole idea is to get vehicles delivered as fast as
possible to save lives,'' Landis said. ``If it means we grant a
little extra time to deliver vehicles to the test facility, so
be it. That's a small investment to save lives. That's a great
return.''
General Purpose Vehicles LLC in New Haven, Michigan, was
one of the nine prototype developers that did not meet the March
27 deadline, said Tibbor Saddler, program manager for the
closely held company. General Purpose currently has ``no status
report'' from the government on its future role in the
competition, Saddler said in a phone interview.
The other five companies that received awards for test
trucks are Falls Church, Virginia-based General Dynamics Corp.;
Oshkosh Truck Corp. of Oshkosh, Wisconsin; Armor Holdings Inc.
in Jacksonville, Florida; Textron Inc. in Providence, Rhode
Island, and Protected Vehicles Inc. in North Charleston, South
Carolina.
Production Awards
Before the deadline to deliver the test vehicles had
passed, the Marines in February gave small, so-called low-rate,
production awards for the trucks with a combined value of more
than $200 million to five companies: Force Protection, BAE,
General Dynamics, Oshkosh and Protected Vehicles.
Armor Holdings spokesman Michael Fox confirmed his
company's test vehicle has been delivered, though would not
provide a date.
General Dynamics spokesman Ken Yamashita declined comment,
referring questions to the Marine Corps. Textron spokesman David
Whitaker also declined to comment, as did Drew Felty of
Protected Vehicles. Oshkosh spokeswoman Kirsten Skyba didn't
immediately return calls.
--Editor: Zahradnik.
I'm back... FRPT has been basing here. Let the political clowns pass that bill and you will see money flowing into FRPT via Fed Ex.
test