US Army M88 Recovery Vehicle is driven by the RENK America AVDS engine. (Courtesy of RENK America)
AUSA: German defense company RENK Group has launched a new US subsidiary, aiming to become a leading manufacturer of combat propulsion packages for combat vehicles.
The new company, formed in July after RENK bought L3Harris Technologies Combat Propulsion Systems for $400 million in cash, believes it has a market advantage by being the only manufacturer in the world that now produces engines, transmissions and hybrid power solutions under one company.
The significance, according to CEO Ted Trzesniowski, is that the company will be a one-stop shop for customers when it comes to propulsion, cutting down on prime customers having to cut deals and truck production from multiple, smaller shops.
“Instead of [the] Army or primes [needing] to deal with multiple vendors, basically they will have one point of contact,” Trzesniowski said. “We are taking responsibility for entire power pack or propulsion, which as you can imagine for the combat vehicles is probably one of the most critical things.”
Thanks to its purchase of the former L3 subsidiary, RENK America products currently power Army vehicles such as the Bradley Fighting Vehicle and M88 Recovery Vehicle. The company is based in Muskegon, Mich, out of a 1.2 million square foot L3Harris facility that the new company converted into its headquarters.
Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) transmission is supported and produced by RENK America. (Courtesy of RENK America)
The parent RENK Group, based in Augsburg, Germany, makes vehicle parts, including gearboxes and transmissions for armored vehicles. According to the company website, RENK Group supplies militaries in more than 30 countries. RENK America will be a “key” addition to the RENK Group, Trzesniowski said, and provide “substantial” new revenue and a route to the US marketplace.
“We will continue to develop our own legacy product, improve that product that’s worked very well known and dependable for US forces, but also we will offer something additional which is basically technology designed in Germany, built now in US, and offer in US market,” Trzesniowski said.
Trzesniowski said that the RENK America is currently talking with several of the contenders in the running for the Army’s Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle which is replacing the Bradley. He said that the company’s power solution “absolutely will include hybrid” propulsion, as “That’s where, I believe, the future lies.”
Trzesniowski said that his view is that military vehicles will eventually be mostly hybrid, not fully electric, because of the challenges associated with recharging on the battlefield.
“I truly believe that they will all eventually get to hybrid,” Trzesniowski said. “They will eventually will turn into power generators, instead of towing a generator behind you or having the big tow generators, you can actually generate that power in the vehicles.”
