Malaysia army to try out new Adiwira trucks

by **hlk** Thu 19 Apr 2012, 16:46

Amdac (M) Sdn Bhd, a player in the heavy duty and special purpose vehicle sector, is sending three of its new Adiwira Interchangeable Tactical Mobility Systems (ITMS) prototype trucks to the Malaysian Army Combat Training Centre (Pulada) for trial.

Its chief executive officer Marina Yahya said it is part of the company's collaboration with the Ministry of Defence (Mindef), adding Adiwira was developed under a cross-fertilisation programme between Amdac and Mindef, as one of Malaysian Industry for Defence, Enforment and Security's initiatives.

"It is hoped that this collaboration will ultimately transform the defence industry from just being a techology user to a technology prime mover," she told reporters today.

She said the cross-fertilisation programme is in line with the government's aspiration for the development of a more sophisticated defence industry, which includes a self-reliant defence sector.

Formerly known as Pesaka Astana, the wholly-owned Bumiputera company was initially involved in the supply of vehicles.

It now manufactures customised and specialised vehicles under the AMDAC brand name for a diversified clientele, and its products are exported to Taiwan, Brunei and Singapore though local sales still account for 70 per cent of the company's total sales.

However, Marina said, over the years, AMDAC has supplied more than 500 specialised and customised vehicles to the Malaysian Armed Forces, Fire and Rescue Department and other organisations, both local and international.

She said Adiwira is an all-terrain, multi-role and functionally flexible tactical mobility vehicle designed to meet the needs of modern armed forces.

"It is interoperable and interchangeable, thus enabling mission, focus and role to be customised all from the base vehicle architecture for immediate operational requirement and combat relevance configuration," she said.

Amdac is among 850 companies taking part in the 13th Defence Services Asia (DSA) exhibition, one of the top five defence and security exhibitions in the world, which started on April 16 and ends today. Bernama