Developed in Close Collaboration with Finnish Forces
Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) Logistics Command has been authorised to sign a contract with Senop Oy for procurement of night vision devices. Following an agreement in May last year, the contract carries a current value of €13 million and includes a €209 million option covering image intensifiers, observation and surveillance devices and laser aiming devices for the next five years. Senop will deliver the initial order by the end of next year.
Senop´s new night vision goggle (NVG), known in the FDF as the M20 night vision device, is a small, lightweight solution, designed as a soldier’s personal device for use in demanding military environments. It uses the latest aspheric and composite technologies, which enable high performance and low over-all system weight.
The laser aiming devices (M20 tactical laser aiming device M20 and Soldier´s laser aiming device) were developed for use as a soldier’s weapon sight and unit commander’s target respectively. Hey were designed for seamless integration with FDF´s existing weapons and can also be used with other weapons and systems.
Senop’s LILLY target acquisition device (MPL21 target acquisition device) is an extremely lightweight device with versatile functions for target acquisition, observation and measuring applications. It is based on high performance thermal imaging, combined with a direct view optical channel, a combination that enables high performance at all times of day.
All these solutions have been developed in close cooperation with the Finnish Army. “The development work has also required intensive field tests and environmental tests to ensure that the devices are easy to use and stand the strain of hard military operations […] developed for infantry soldiers with the guidance of real end-users,” commented Senop’s Managing Director, Aki Korhonen.
Effective night-fighting requires overarching capabilities. Senop is developing holistic solutions for networked military environments and has, for example, delivered its VV3X night sights, VVLite night vision devices, and LISA target acquisition systems (MPL15) to the Finnish Army. All these devices support the capability to fight at night and in difficult weather conditions and are also networked to modern C2I systems to support situational awareness.
“Our mission is to help customers to build new capabilities by tailoring solutions according to their specific needs and requirements. Our priority customers are armies and soldiers. Our development work with the Finnish Army has shown the agility of our company to support the customers,” Korhonen points out. Development of the image intensifier and laser aiming devices was finalised from concept to qualified product within one year.
Senop´s defence and security portfolio consists of high-performance image intensifiers, night sights, intelligent thermal weapon sights, handheld target acquisition and observation systems, vehicle camera systems, hyperspectral cameras, and multipurpose container-based system platform solutions.
