At the same time, young firms hope to gain advantages from working with the long-established defense corporations.
While many industrial plants are currently on summer break, Renk, based in the south of Augsburg, is running at full capacity. The production facilities are operating at maximum load. Renk manufactures and maintains gear systems, particularly for military vehicles such as tanks. Its customer base extends across the entire Western world, and demand is so strong that the company can hardly keep up with orders.
Nevertheless, CEO Alexander Sagel has initiated fundamental changes within the corporation. The traditional company is to become faster and more digital. For this purpose, it has found a partner in Arx Robotics. The young Munich-based start-up develops unmanned vehicles that can be controlled autonomously. CEO Sagel describes this as a future market that Renk intends to explore jointly with Arx.
Development of an Autonomous Armored Vehicle
Founded by former German Army officers, Arx Robotics is expected to teach Renk how to operate more quickly in the digital environment—both internally and in product development. In return, Renk contributes its expertise in the design and mass production of military gear systems.
The two companies share the goal of developing an autonomous armored vehicle. It is planned to weigh around eleven tons—significantly less than a modern Leopard 2 tank, but considerably more than the small unmanned tracked vehicles that Arx Robotics is currently producing, including for Ukraine. In addition, Renk intends to use its international sales network to help the start-up gain access to markets such as the United States.
Speed Through Cooperation
Traditionally, the development of tanks, missiles, or helicopters takes many years, often even decades. Large corporations have long been accustomed to such long-term planning. However, Russia’s war against Ukraine has demonstrated that new defense technologies must become available much more quickly in order to remain competitive.
As a result, established major companies are now entering into partnerships with smaller start-ups almost on a monthly basis. For instance, Airbus, a corporation with tens of thousands of employees and billions in revenue, is cooperating with drone specialist Quantum Systems, based in Gilching, which has fewer than 700 employees.
Despite this enormous difference in size, Quantum CEO Florian Seibel describes the partnership as equal. His company is geared toward rapid development and unconventional thinking, while Airbus contributes vast experience in complex mass production as well as global market power. Together, this forms an almost unbeatable model, Seibel explained in an interview with Bayerischer Rundfunk.
Drones in the Digital Combat Cloud
Their first joint project is the so-called “Combat Cloud.” This refers to the digital networking of large amounts of data collected by drones, satellites, surveillance systems, or ground troops. Artificial intelligence is to evaluate this data in the future and assist combat pilots. Quantum Systems provides the necessary expertise in drone technology and software.
The goal, according to Seibel, is to secure the future of aircraft such as the Eurofighter, not to replace them: traditional aircraft are so complex that drone systems cannot make them redundant. Instead, both technologies will be needed in parallel.
Warheads for Drones
In contrast to agile start-ups, traditional corporations are often slower but possess extensive experience in certifications and procurement procedures for military systems. Moreover, companies such as MBDA Germany, based in Schrobenhausen, hold critical approvals as well as testing grounds where explosives and ammunition can be developed and tested.
For this reason, Stark, a sister company of Quantum Systems, is also cooperating with MBDA subsidiary TDW. The Bavarian company is set to supply several thousand armor-piercing warheads for Stark’s “Virtus” drone in the future.
With information from dpa
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