Singapore Places Contract for Soldier System

9 Juni 2009

Advanced Combat Management System-ACMS (photo : Aviation Week)

ST Engineering announced this week that its electronics division, ST Electronics, has been awarded a contract to provide the Advanced Combat Man System (ACMS) to the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The project which is worth over S$100m will commence immediately and is expected to be completed by 2012.

The ACMS is an soldier system fully equipped with advanced Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence and network capabilities. The ACMS is a joint development effort that started in 1998 between the country's Defence Science and Technology Agency, the SAF and ST Electronics with the support of Singapore Technologies Kinetics in the area of the weapon sub-system.

ACMS poster (image : Defencetalk)

The development of the ACMS focuses on two key areas - to ensure seamless integration of individual soldier's capabilities and to integrate the soldier as part of a network-centric force. As part of the design of the ACMS, key elements such as the weight of the systems, man-machine interface and the networked and interoperable capability of the ACMS with other systems are defined as some of the requirements for its development.

The introduction of the ACMS is a part of the SAF's 3rd Generation transformation to progressively provide tactical units with network capabilities, which are vital for ensuring mission success. The ACMS allows section commanders and team leaders to become a part of a larger network that is able to tap into the wider resources of the battalion and call for more responsive and precise fire support. These sections function not only as fighting units but also as ground sensors, tracking the positions of various forces and feeding images and information back to the command headquarters for enhanced command and control of the battlefield.

(Asian Military Review)