Selex Galileo, a leading international defense electronics company, has collaborated with King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) to perform joint research and development projects in radio frequency, radar, communications, laser, electro-optics (eo) and infra-red technologies. The collaboration agreement is based on a long- standing relationship between Selex Galileo and KACST and builds upon a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in June 2008. Selex Galileo is renowned for its distinctive strength in airborne mission critical systems and a wide range of capabilities for homeland security applications. In a recent interview, Barry Anstey, vice president, Selex Galileo Saudi Arabia Company Subsidiary, said Selex Galileo has been operating in the Kingdom for over 30 years to deliver innovative technology into the country through its subsidiary. He further said its global presence brought it a turnover of over 1.7 billion euros per year. Selex Galileo designs, develops, produces and supports mission-critical defense electronic systems. The company provides capabilities in battle space, surveillance, support services and simulation & training. Its technologies are used every day in both ordinary and crisis operational environments worldwide. Selex Galileo owns key technologies in the integration of complete systems, microwave, signal processing, RF and electro-optics, computing and mechanics, which have lead to many innovations such as E-Scan radar systems. In Saudi Arabia, We have set up a local Company under Saudi Arabian law, employing local resources in order to better understand and meet our customers needs and to ensure that we can deliver a service locally from within the Kingdom. “We also have various collaboration agreements in place with various Saudi agencies and will form joint ventures with leading Saudi companies in the very near future,” he said. “As Selex Galileo, we believe customer intimacy is essential to building long lasting and profitable relationships,” Anstey pointed out. Commenting on its expansion in Saudi Arabia, he said “we are confident that from an industry perspective that we have been highly reliable.” “As we expand our presence in KSA, our aim is to provide greater operational security that is delivered from within the borders of KSA. This will ensure that we provide good quality, reliable support at times when it is most needed.” Selex Galileo has provided people and technology to the program for many years and “we have had our engineers and specialists based at many locations around the Kingdom including Riyadh, Dhahran, Tabuk, Khamis Mushayt and Taif,” he said. “Our vision is to deliver our In-Kingdom Industrial Participation (IKIP) proposals via joint ventures with Saudi companies. This will see Selex Galileo in-country position with its Saudi partners and acting as a prime partner in support of the UK prime contractor,” Anstey noted, adding that “we are currently developing groundbreaking proposals and concepts that will provide high levels of technology transfer for some of the most advanced systems.”
