AUSTRALIAN company Electro Optic Systems Holdings (EOS) will jointly develop, market, produce and support remote weapon systems with Hyundai-WIA.
Under the agreement between the companies, they will establish remote weapon systems production in an existing Hyundai-WIA plant in South Korea.
Initially, the products manufactured at that plant will be based on current EOS products. However, new and upgraded systems will emerge from the joint development programs as a result of the collaborative agreement.
The companies have agreed to pool their technologies in product development, quality improvement and production engineering. This will help them counter volatile global demand due to unpredictable government budgets. Production capacities of the weapon systems will be scalable, and other benefits include risk reduction and cost reduction.
EOS develops remote weapon systems for the global market, while Hyundai-WIA is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Group, focused on defence products.
In 2010, EOS entered into a similar agreement with Northrop Grumman to jointly develop, produce and support remote weapon systems for the USA and some export markets.
With this latest agreement, EOS has partners in both the US and north Asia to produce, support and enhance its weapon systems. The partners have significant investments in scalable production capacity and their plants have the necessary infrastructure to produce modern military equipment.
According to EOS the Australian manufacturing industry has been put under pressure by currency appreciation and labour market constraints. Its only Australian plant, in Queanbeyan, is now retaining 65 percent of its historical scope of work. By transferring some production activities offshore to its partners, EOS hopes to improve its competitiveness and market access.
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