Outstanding drivability: Horstmann had the privilege of designing the best powertrain for the British Army’s AFV430 Bulldog armored vehicle

Following a competition Horstman has been awarded a new contract from the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) for the manufacture of new Final Drives for the AFV430 Bulldog armoured vehicle. As part of the award Horstman has committed to taking action in support of the UK MOD’s climate change goals, economic equality and equal opportunity. This award follows many years of production and support to the British Army’s armoured fleet including Warrior, AS90, Terrier and a current project to upgrade the Challenger tank’s Hydrogas®. Final Drives are an important element in the drive train of an armoured vehicle. Installed on the left and right sides, they transmit all drive, brake, and steering functions from the transmission to the track. The RENK Group has a long history of designing and manufacturing high quality final drives and we are bringing those values to the UK for this contract.

The FV430 series covers a number of armoured vehicles of the British Army, all built on the same chassis. The most common is the FV432 armoured personnel carrier. Introduced in December 2006, the Bulldog was designed to meet an urgent operational requirement for extra armoured vehicles for use in counter-insurgency campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. It features an applique reactive armour package designed by Israeli company Rafael capable of defeating hollow charge warheads, such as the RPG-7 rockets used by insurgents.A new engine and steering gear provide better mobility and maneuverability. Other features include air conditioning and a gun station fitted with a 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Gun that can be controlled from inside the vehicle. Nine hundred FV430s are expected to be modified in this way and are being deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan Bulldog variants are in service with the infantry as command vehicles, 81mm mortar carriers, ambulances, and recovery vehicles.

“This was a tight competition and we are honoured to be selected. This is testament to our commercial, project and delivery teams – and our valued supply chain partners – who have all worked hard to win this new work,” says Ian Pain, CEO Horstman Group.

Horstman are proud of decades’ long relationship in support of the British Army and as part of the RENK Group we look forward to supporting the UK MOD into the future. Horstman Horstman, a company of the RENK Group, has been headquartered in Bath since 1913, with business units in the UK, the US and Canada.

It delivers mobility solutions for the global wheeled and armoured markets’ hardest challenges. Horstman provides world leading design and manufacturing capabilities, with customers benefiting from our time-tested pedigree in innovation, product development, manufacture and defence project management in heavy armoured and tracked vehicle suspension systems. Horstman designed and manufactured products have been integrated for many years throughout multiple, battle proven, British Army platforms and for customers globally. Headquartered in Augsburg, Germany, RENK Group is a globally leading manufacturer of high-quality transmissions, engines, hybrid drive systems, suspension systems, slide bearings, couplings and test systems. The group serves a wide range of end-markets with a particular focus on armoured vehicles, defence and civil marine, power generation, plastics, oil & gas, and others. With over 3,000 employees, RENK Group generates annual revenues of over EUR 800 million.