NATO kicks off tech refresh project

NATO has embarked on a major technology refresh project, with the agency briefing industry representatives on bids that will be launched in September.

Agency officials briefed around 700 North American and European industry representatives on the first invitations for bids at the NATO Communication and Information Agency's industry conference, NITEC17, in Ottawa on 24-26 April.

The projects will see €3 billion in contracts let across a range of technology areas, including command and control software for land operations (€2 million), NATO Joint Targeting System (€8 million), logistics for multinational operations (€30 million), service management and control (€27 million), air command and control (€320 million), new NATO messaging service and information services (€70 million), and satellite communication services (€1.5 billion).

The aim of the NITEC17 conference was to give industry an opportunity to prepare for these competitions and identify teaming partners.

The next round of bid invitations will launch in 2018, which will include a refresh for NATO's cyber shield, investments in education and training, as well as further investments in air command and control, ballistic missile defence, intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance, business applications and advanced software to support NATO's operations.