NZ Navy replaces frigate simulator

Bluewater Systems, a Christchurch-based ARM solutions developer, has delivered a communications retrofit to the New Zealand navy.

The project involved retrofitting the communications system within the combat system tactical trainer, used by the navy at its Devonport base to train the command team and operational personnel working on the two New Zealand ANZAC frigates.

The simulator unit was one of three originally built by Stanilite, which won the contract for the onboard and onshore communications systems installed in the eight ANZAC frigates.

According to navy technical manager David Adams, who oversaw the project, Stanilite was bought by ADI in 1996, and the trainer systems are no longer supported.

Installing a replacement communications systems in the trainer was essential to ensure its ongoing usefulness in creating realistic, real-time training for the command teams who work onboard the New Zealand frigates.

"The original communication systems have now reached the end of their useful life after 10 years so we required a supplier who could reverse engineer the hardware and software to deliver the same systems that are currently being simulated and be able to support it going forward," said Adams.

"The war games scenarios are very realistic and can be quite dramatic, with personnel having to deal with incoming missiles, communication with the helicopter pilot, communicating with the bridge and other parts of the frigate, and generally rehearse the skills required to run the frigate under combat conditions," Adams said.

Instructors in the control room sit at six instructor stations and act as the rest of the ship, using a touch-screen system to respond to different roles.

The replacement system included 15 broadcast communication stations and two paging stations.

Bluewater submitted a tender for the project, based on using its in-house ARM expertise and the ready availability of ARM-based SoMs (System on Modules), making it possible to quickly build a custom circuit board that could provide all the applications required.