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17 February 2013

IDEX 2013 - Putting Trust in RUAG is the Right Way to Go

One of the core competencies of RUAG is the development and production of protection systems for armoured vehicles against ballistic threats. Thanks to years of experience in ammunition and the impact of weapons, and having built 308 LEOPARD 2 A4 Main Battle Tanks (MBT) with 134 LEOPARD 2 A4s upgraded (the last one left production line in September 2012) for the Swiss Armed Forces (being the only supplier for the Swiss Armed Forces in the last 25 years), the technical competence of RUAGs R&D department and the close cooperation with the customer is unprecedented.

Protection of armoured vehicles is a matter of security for crew members even a matter of life and death. To increase protection against threats of any kind, RUAG has developed various effective, modular and easy to handle systems, all of which mission-proven.

RUAGs side protection systems are highly effective and easy to mount. Size and shape of the protection modules are adaptable to vehicles and requirements. Due to RUAGs modular concept mobility is not impaired.

RUAG, being a vehicle manufacturer with a protection systems branch, knows how a vehicle moves, thereby finding the most intelligent solution not to add weight, which is a huge issue in todays battlefield.

RUAG provides the SidePRO vehicle armouring systems that encompass the latest protective products for tactical wheel-, logistical support, and tracked vehicles. These armour solutions use an array of advanced armour materials to provide a system solution that meets the soldiers needs and defeats threats that are widespread on the battlefield. These advanced technology systems are modular, adaptable, and responsive to local threat requirements allowing fast and effective adjustments to armour protection levels and enhanced survivability.

In a September Live-Fire test at Ochsenboden Testing Centre in Switzerland, in front of an international customer audience, RUAG unveiled and demonstrated SidePRO-ATR and SidePRO-KE/IED.

SidePRO-ATR is a highly engineered, fully integrated, modular passive protection system for medium APCs and MBTs that utilises a variety of advanced lightweight materials for direct application on said vehicles.


SidePRO-ATR (Photo: RUAG)


SidePRO-KE/IED is a modular polyvalent composite protection system protection system that utilises a variety of advanced lightweight materials for direct application on tracked vehicles. Both meet and exceed current threat level protection requirements.


SidePRO-KE/IED (Photo: RUAG)


In the live fire test RUAG demonstrated SidePRO-ATRs protection abilities against RPG-7VM rounds to visualise its multi-hit capability; and all four were stopped, confirming SidePRO-ATRs capability as a fully passive protection system to counter KE, CE, EFPs, and RPGs.

At the same test, RUAG demonstrated SidePRO-KE/IEDs protection abilities against standard 14.5mm x 114B32 API rounds (to simulate an RPG attack), and a detonated artillery round (to simulate and IED / roadside bomb attack). SidePRO-KE/IED stopped all rounds, demonstrating its multi-hit capability; and the damage after the artillery IED blast was very small, showing extensive impacts from blast fragments, but all shrapnel was stopped within SidePRO-KE/IED, not penetrating the base layer, thereby giving excellent damage control

With high multi-hit capability, protecting vehicles against the effects of multiple projectiles, blast and fragments, both SidePRO-ATR and SidePRO-KE/IED is the perfect solution for todays theatre of operation, adding minimum weight to vehicles, providing excellent protection with the least reduction in manoeuvrability and operational range.

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