hmmm... can't help but notice that ST is made to sound like a
"merchant of death" exploiting global uncertainties to make a quick
buck... sure, grudging acknowledgement is made of ST's
technological achievements, but u just can't help but notice that
the article is not exactly flattering...
Call to arms in Singapore yields explosive
results
Age, Melbourne
August 8, 2003
A REGIONALweapons manufacturer is establishing itself as a global
competitor.
Another bombing in Jakarta, an attempted coup in the Philippines,
the war on terror, the war against Saddam Hussein, Islamic
separatists in north-western China, Peru's Shining Path
resurfacing, Chechnya, Liberia, the Solomon Islands, the West Bank
and Gaza. These are good times for arms manufacturers.
And right in our region there is a company that is making a bid to
be an important international player in weapons production and
sales. Its name is Singapore Technologies Engineering, a company
that is listed in Singapore and ultimately controlled by the
Singapore Government. The company aims to do more than simply
supply Singapore's armed forces. It is touting for big export
sales.
ST Engineering has four divisions that are involved in military
research and hardware manufacturing: ST Kinetics, ST Aerospace, ST
Marine and ST Electronics.
ST Kinetics is the key military hardware division and has almost
3000 employees. It can provide field air-defence mounts, advanced
mortar systems, remote weapon stations, automatic
grenade-launchers, machine-guns, assault rifles howitzers and
munitions, all of which are made in Singapore.
ST Kinetics has also developed the Terrex AV81, an eight-wheeled
light armoured vehicle. The company signed a memorandum of
understanding last year with the Turkish automotive manufacturer
Otokar to jointly develop an 8x8 vehicle based on the Terrex AV81
prototype to bid for a supply contract with the Turkish Army.
It has also developed the Bionix Infantry Carrier Vehicle, which
has been sold to the US Army.
But it's the SAR-21 automatic rifle that is ST Kinetics's premier
product. First came the SAR-80 and the SAR-88 rifles. There's also
the Ultimax 100, a gas-operated, rotating-bolt machine-gun,
produced in Singapore since 1982. All three have been sold abroad.
Sales of the SAR-80, for example, were made to South Africa.
However, most development has gone on the SAR-21. Several variants
of the SAR-21 have been produced for export. In the US, these
weapons are distributed via ST Engineering's subsidiary, VT
Systems.
ST Kinetics is a regular exhibitor at international arms fairs and
the company is expanding its offshore presence too, with agreements
and equity stakes with other defence contractors, including
Britain's Vickers Defence Systems and Canada's Silvatech Group. It
also has a development agreement with Australia's Innovonics for
the installation of fleet management and vehicle-monitoring systems
for its Bronco all-terrain vehicles.
ST Kinetics's sister company ST Aerospace is a global player in
upgrading and maintaining military and commercial aircraft. It
provides upgrades to the world's air forces for fighter, transport
and rotary-wing military aircraft. Recent clients have included the
Turkish air force, the Brazilian air force and the Singapore air
force. The US Navy is another long-term client.
ST Marine supplies the Singapore navy with small vessels and it,
too, is keen to win export contracts with foreign navies. Its
capabilities also include ship repair and ship conversion.
ST Electronics has a subsidiary, ST Training & Simulation, that
exports flight-mission trainers for pilot training. Also on offer
are armour gunnery and tactical simulators.
There's more to Singapore than shopping, business conventions and a
ban on chewing gum.
