MEETING THE CALL TO INNOVATE AT PACE

The UK launched its Defence Industrial Strategy earlier this month and put innovation at its heart, declaring “we know whoever gets technology to their frontline forces the fastest, wins.”  In the past quarter, we’ve secured a major government contract, unveiled the first in a new line of Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) solutions, and strengthened our capabilities through a strategic acquisition – all clear proof of our commitment to delivering innovation at pace.

Earlier in September, Roke announced a new £20m contract with the British Army to ensure that Project ZODIAC – which will transform how the armed forces share and receive data on the battlefield – is optimised for the frontline.

Project ZODIAC is the Army’s programme of record focused on modernising its Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) capabilities. ZODIAC fuses and integrates sensors, decision-makers, and effectors into a single network and one shared picture, helping commanders make faster, smarter decisions on the battlefield. In short, it will deliver an operational advantage and increase lethality by giving soldiers more agile, intelligent tools for gathering and sharing battlefield information.

Developed using a spiral development approach that innovates iteratively, Project ZODIAC replaces the traditional long-cycle approach with a continuous “software factory” model. This allows new capabilities, updates, and security enhancements to be delivered in weeks rather than years, ensuring that the Army stays ahead of rapidly evolving threats and mission-critical systems are resilient in contested environments.

Roke has been the project lead on ZODIAC since 2021 and has already developed a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), successfully deploying it in a large scale army exercise.

Roke’s latest Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) solution, EM-Vis Deceive, is also set to transform the frontline. EM-Vis Deceive is a portable EW system that brings Electromagnetic Attack (EA) capabilities directly to troops on the ground. The lightweight system helps military forces detect, track, and disrupt enemy communications, drones, or other electronic signals. It is the first fully integrated person-borne system of its kind to be designed and built to modular open standards – providing a flexible, upgradable, and tailorable solution for different missions.

EM-Vis Deceive is also STICS aligned. STICS is a suite of open standards and specifications enabling modularity and interoperability in C5ISR and EW systems. It can be operated by skilled light, medium or heavy EW specialists or by general troops with minimal training.

The system marks a turning point in EW. For decades, systems have been custom built and made to counter specific threats. But these are expensive and slow to upgrade. With the battlefield evolving so quickly, troops have been left at a severe disadvantage. EM-Vis Deceive changes this – it can be quickly upgraded, software updates can be pushed faster, and it can easily communicate with other systems.

Roke bolstered its significant operational capabilities through the acquisition of Landguard Systems, a company that designs, manufactures, and supports Software Defined Radio (SDR) systems and associated security products that enable defence, government, and law enforcement customers to protect crucial operational assets. These specialist systems include high performance tracking products operating across satellite communications, cellular networks, and other radio frequency technologies, as well as SDR transceivers which provide flexible and reprogrammable radio capabilities incorporating the latest interoperability standards.

The combination of Roke’s Cyber and Electromagnetic Activities (CEMA) pedigree and Landguard’s modular, high-performance technologies creates a unique UK sovereign portfolio of defence, national security and law enforcement products and capabilities that can be immediately shared with Roke’s existing defence and national security customers and also used to enhance its significant (>£300 million) international sales pipeline.

Paul Macgregor, Roke Managing Director, said: “By securing a landmark government contract, launching our first next-generation Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) solution, and expanding our expertise in software-defined radios through our strategic acquisition of Landguard Systems, we are already matching the government’s call to innovate at pace and get cutting-edge technology to the frontline faster.”