Drones on Patrol: FLIR Soars with $48-million Defense Contract

An Oregon-based thermal imaging company may soon help mitigate the dangers of potential nuclear, biological or chemical attacks against the American military.

FLIR systems recently announced winning a $48.1 million contract from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) in support of the Nuclear Biological Chemical Reconnaissance Vehicle Sensor Suite Upgrade (NBCRV SSU) program for the U.S. Army.

A FLIR statement explains:

“Under the agreement, FLIR will develop a platform agnostic modular mission payload, which integrates multiple chemical, biological and radiological sensors into a flexible command and control (C2) system. This C2 system will allow for data integration from the various sensors that will enable automation of certain tasks, reducing warfighter burden. The C2 system and the automation will allow for collaboration between manned Stryker vehicles, unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), and sensor integrated drone platforms.”

“We are proud to be chosen by the U.S. Army as the lead developer and integrator for this key ground combat capability,” said Jim Cannon, President and CEO of FLIR. “This contract represents a significant example of our evolution from sensors to intelligent sensing to solutions that save lives and livelihoods. We will provide a wide selection of capabilities in this manned and unmanned platform application to help customers achieve successful mission outcomes.”

The program will operate out of FLIR facilities in Stillwater, Okla. and Elkridge, Md.

Last week, the company launched the FLIR Thermal Studio, an innovative software suite to process and analyze thermal imagery. The package includes automated processing to streamline workflow and increase productivity.

“FLIR Thermal Studio accelerates even the most complex post-production thermal image and video processing, including multi-source plots and formula computations, multi-format export, and FLIR’s patented Multi-Spectral Dynamic Imaging, which superimposes visual light details on thermal images,” a FLIR press release stated.

The announcements come on the heels of FLIR’s $200-million acquisition of Aeryon Labs in January.

Based in Canada, Aeryon is a leading designer and manufacturer of drone solutions built around aircraft under 20 pounds. The company mainly works with global military, public safety, and critical infrastructure market with 20 military agencies in more than 30 countries as customers, including the U.S. Defense Department.