Aydin Displays Awarded Navy Contract

Video Display Corporation’s Aydin Displays, Inc. subsidiary has been awarded a contract by the United States Navy to upgrade 20.1 in. flat panel displays and to provide new displays for use on the Navy's Smartship Program. At the dawn of the 21st Century, the U.S. Navy's Smartship Program answers the challenges of reducing manpower while increasing efficiency and safety. Installation and integration of the latest technologies provides the fleet with automatic digital control and status monitoring for its vital operational systems. Key to the Smartship program are the rugged flat panel displays designed and manufactured by Aydin, headquartered in Birdsboro, PA. The improved displays will replace older Aydin displays used for bridge navigation and status as part of the Navigation Sensor System Interface (NAVSSI) program. The new dual-mode displays can provide both traditional NAVSSI capability as well as interface with the new Integrated Bridge System (IBS) to provide real-time graphical ship's position, electronic charts, and hazards to navigation. In addition to meeting every technical specification provided by the Navy, Aydin also exceeded the expectations of Navy program managers through aggressive cost-reduction and leveraging of manufacturing efficiencies. Aydin is an ISO 9002:2000 certified company. Currently, the U.S. Navy intends to upgrade over 250 Aydin displays already installed on combatant and support ships. In the next few years, all U.S. Navy ships will have Aydin's upgraded 20.1" displays. Pending orders are for over 300 new displays. The total potential value for upgraded and new displays on this multi-year program exceeds $6M.