Andreas Hülle

Sensor solution provider HENSOLDT successfully carried out the initial fitting and operating activities of its newly developed electro-optical vision system SETAS (See-through Armor System) with the British Army’s Armored Trials and Development Unit (ATDU) in Bovington. This activity was to capture, understand and then minimize potential operating issues in the future. Fitted on a ‘Warrior’ Infantry Fighting Vehicle, SETAS demonstrated its potential to give full situational awareness in the daylight hours to the vehicle crew while staying safely inside. SETAS electro-optical vision system SETAS is being presented at this year’s Defense & Security Equipment International DSEi in London on the HENSOLDT booth, No. S3-200, and on an ‘Eagle 6x6’ Armored vehicle on the stand of General Dynamics, No. S9-200. The user can stay in safety within the vehicle but with a high degree of situational awareness"“SETAS gives Armored vehicle crews exceptional visibility of their surroundings”, says Andreas Hülle, Managing Director of HENSOLDT Optronics. “The user can stay in safety within the vehicle but with a high degree of situational awareness of his surrounding environment outside. Particularly in urban environment this capability is a key enabler for rapid decision making  and as such platform survivability”. Integrated camera models The SETAS Integrated Camera Models houses two types of powerful sensors, very high resolution visual cameras (1 or 2) and two uncooled thermal imager module (UCM). The visual sensor is capable of the recognition of a pedestrian at a distance of some 300 meters. This observation capability can be further enhanced with the integration of other sensors, such as acoustic sniper detection sensors, laser warner system and a hemispherical camera to cover the area directly above the vehicle. Using a head mounted display as HMI, a crew member inside can virtually ‘see through’ the armor achieving the same amount of orientation as observing when ‘heads up'. Intelligent software algorithms are automatically alerting the crew if a potentially threatening movement is detected within the 360° around the vehicle. SETAS can easily be fitted as a stand-alone system. However, greater advantage of the system can be achieved if the SETAS is connected to the vehicle’s network or Battle Management System, displaying external data to each crew member individually. SETAS will be available from 2020.

HENSOLDT’s Optronics business line and Atlas One-to-One Services LLC have agreed at IDEX International Defense Exhibition and Conference to set up a Joint Venture. As a further step, they will establish an Optronics Center of Excellence with a maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) capability. By doing so, HENSOLDT, the German Sensor House, will fulfill its offset obligations set by United Arab Emirates Offset Authority Tawazun Economic Council (TEC), connected to the sale of NightOwl cameras, spotting scopes and night sight equipment to the United Arab Emirates. Service Capabilities For HENSOLDT Products The Optronics Center of Excellence, based in Abu Dhabi, will offer current and future customers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and in the region unique service capabilities for HENSOLDT products at service level 3 with spare parts and special tool and test equipment (STTE). HENSOLDT will provide the necessary equipment, including a Golden Unit of the Night Owl M camera system, as well as in depth training of personnel of the JV partner. HENSOLDT will provide the necessary equipment, including a Golden Unit of the Night Owl M camera systemIn the future, the Optronics Center of Excellence will also provide service for third party products as well as a system integration capability and the sale of HENSOLDT’s electro-optical and other surveillance sensors for wide area surveillance in the region. These include thermal cameras, visual cameras, as well as laser, passive and active sensors. Supporting UAE’s Economic Development “HENSOLDT and Atlas Group have a long-lasting relationship and together provide customer-oriented solutions to the General Headquarters (GHQ). The creation of the JV, of which 51 per cent will be held by Atlas Services and 49 per cent by HENSOLDT, will further develop and deepen the existing economic ties between both parties,” explains Andreas Hülle, Managing Director of HENSOLDT Optronics. “This collaboration will allow the UAE to benefit from technology and local R&D, which was not available before. Our Joint Venture will support UAE’s economic development through the development and transfer of know-how, creating local job opportunities and enhancing HENSOLDT’s market access for security and safety applications in the region. Our joint venture will benefit from being able to provide local services to the end-user in the region.” The contract was signed by HENSOLDT and Atlas One-to-One Services LLC and will come into immediate effect.

The holding company will rest on two pillars, HENSOLDT Sensors GmbH and HENSOLDT Optronics GmbH HENSOLDT, the newly founded sensor house, will be given a holding structure enabling close proximity to the market, which will be headed by a new management team. Airbus DS Electronics And Border Security GmbH The company, which was formed from Airbus defense electronics activities and a majority stake in which was sold to the US financial investor KKR on 1 March 2017, will pursue their activities with two private limited liability companies to be controlled by a holding company. The managing directors of the holding company will be Thomas Müller, previously managing director of Airbus DS Electronics and Border Security GmbH (EBS), Axel Salzmann (Chief Financial Officer, CFO), until recently CFO of Bilfinger SE in Mannheim, and Peter Fieser (Chief Human Resources Officer, CHRO), who previously managed the HR department of Airbus DS EBS GmbH. HENSOLDT Sensors GmbH And HENSOLDT Optronics GmbH The holding company will rest on two pillars: on HENSOLDT Sensors GmbH, currently still Airbus DS Electronics and Border Security GmbH, under the direction of Peter Schlote, who is also the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of HENSOLDT, and CHRO Peter Fieser. The second pillar will be HENSOLDT Optronics GmbH, which is currently still Airbus DS Optronics GmbH, under the direction of Andreas Hülle. The change in the legal name of the companies will take place in the second quarter of 2017 as soon as the corresponding entries have been made in the commercial register.

HENSOLDT will provide leading edge technology solutions to armed forces and security agencies Following the closing of the transaction between Airbus Group SE and KKR, an investment firm, a new European defense company headquartered in Germany, HENSOLDT, has been launched. The new company employs 4000 highly qualified staff, about 3400 in Germany and 600 in South Africa. The main industrial sites are Taufkirchen/Munich, Ulm, Friedrichshafen, and Oberkochen in Germany and Pretoria in South Africa. A dedicated representative office in Berlin has been established and several offices represent the new enterprise in countries like India, US, Chile, Brazil, South Korea and Spain. Members Of Executive Committee The new company, headquartered in Taufkirchen close to Munich, will be led by an Executive Committee comprising CEO, Thomas Müller; Head of HR, Peter Fieser; Head of Finance, Axel Salzmann; and Head of Operations, Peter Schlote. Further members of the Executive Committee are Head of Electronic Warfare/Situational Awareness, Uwe Virkus; Head of Radar/IFF/Data links, Erwin Paulus, Head of Optronics, Andreas Hülle; Head of Sales & Marketing, Sabine K. Hipp, Head of Strategic Business Development, Celia Pelaz; and General Counsel, Solms U. Wittig. The HENSOLDT brand derives from Moritz Carl Hensoldt (1821-1903), a German pioneer of optics and precision mechanics who developed benchmark technology solutions and products in his field. The name HENSOLDT stands for premium solutions, combining excellence, innovation, and efficiency. Key Product Lines HENSOLDT will provide leading edge technology solutions to armed forces and security agencies. Firmly grounded in its three product lines—Optronics, Radar/IFF/Datalink, and Electronic Warfare/Situational Awareness—the company offers sensor solutions for air, sea, and land applications. This includes the protection of critical infrastructures, air defense, airborne self-protection, vehicle and convoy protection, signal intelligence and data links, as well as night vision, thermal imaging, laser rangefinding, and optronic targeting. Furthermore, the portfolio comprises mission avionics equipment, such as computers, mission planning devices, and situational awareness systems for helicopters.PUMA And LEOPARD II Armored Vehicles HENSOLDT employs 4000 highly qualified staff, about 3400 in Germany and 600 in South Africa HENSOLDT is a key contributor to major European defense acquisition programs and has demonstrated its global reach by winning a number of international contracts. Among the most prominent air and space platforms equipped by HENSOLDT are the F-16, Eurofighter, Gripen and Rafale combat aircraft, the Tandem-X and EDRS-A satellites, the A400M transport aircraft, as well as helicopters of various types. Furthermore, the company provides mission-critical equipment to the PUMA and LEOPARD II armored vehicles, the class 212 and 209 submarines, the US Navy Freedom class Littoral Combat Ship and the German Navy F125 frigate. HENSOLDT’s sights and night vision optics have also been chosen for the German Future Soldier Programme Infanterist der Zukunft. XPeller Counter-UAV System Innovation is deeply embedded in HENSOLDT’s DNA. Leading-edge solutions like the modular counter-UAV system XPeller, that protects critical infrastructures against drones and the passive radar system that provides a common air picture without any active emission stand proof of HENSOLDT’s highly advanced technologies. In addition, HENSOLDT advances a number of strategic technologies defined by the German government which are well equipped for a prominent role in future programs like TLVS, MKS-180, Eurofighter AESA radar, the Heavy Transport Helicopter and airborne SIGINT.