Oshkosh And Team Works To Protect Troops From Explosively Formed Projectile Attacks

Oshkosh Truck Corporation, Ceradyne and Ideal Innovations (I-3) have announced an agreement to further develop, produce and market the Bull armored vehicle. The Bull is intended to address the increasing need for protection from improvised explosive devices (IED), mine blasts and high-threat, explosively formed projectiles (EFP) and will be built on a combat-proven Oshkosh Truck chassis.

The Bull advanced technology armored solution, conceived by I-3 in 2005 and developed with Ceradyne in 2006, has been tested by the Army Test Center, Aberdeen, Md., and demonstrated to be capable of protecting vehicle occupants against IED, EFP and mine blast threats. It is designed to meet current IED threats, and is intended to withstand the increasingly prevalent and higher EFP threats now faced by the U.S. military.

"It is our mission to help protect the brave men and women of the U.S. military against the most dangerous threats, and together with Ceradyne and I-3, we intend to build the best vehicles to protect our soldiers against the higher threat weapons used by our enemies," said Robert G. Bohn, Oshkosh Truck chairman, president and chief executive officer. "We believe the Bull will be a great addition to Oshkosh Truck's long history of setting the standard for serving our troops in the field."

Joel P. Moskowitz, chief executive officer for Ceradyne, said, "This team will bring the United States military an advanced, integrated armor solution and survivability system to our soldiers and Marines. The Oshkosh Truck chassis, which will serve as the primary mobility platform for the Bull, has already been used successfully in combat. When combined with the Bull's special armor, it provides a highly survivable mobile armored vehicle that will serve our military well."

Bob Kocher, chief executive officer of I-3 added, "We believe that the Bull's integrated cab and advanced armor produced by Ceradyne combined with Oshkosh Truck's highly capable and reliable chassis, and both companies' extensive production capabilities, will provide our deployed soldiers effective protection from IEDs and EFPs."