Thursday, July 24, 2008

IRobot snags another lucrative Army deal

By Mass High Tech Staff

IRobot Corp. reports it has received a $17.5 million order from the U.S. Army for its PackBot military robots.

Under the deal, Bedford-based iRobot (Nasdaq: IRBT) will deliver 220 PackBots to the Army by the end of the year. The robot being ordered is the PackBot 510 with FasTac Kit, which the company said helps soldiers investigate suspicious objects, identify roadside bombs and uncover unexploded ordinance. The model can attain a speed of about 5.6 miles per hour and climb grades of up to 60 degrees, the company said. 

Earlier this month, iRobot landed a $240,000 workforce training grant from the Massachusetts Department of Workforce Development to train their workers in lean management practices.

Last month, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency gave the company a $3.3 million, multi-year contract to create Chemical Robots (ChemBots) for use in unmanned urban search and rescue and reconnaissance work.

Also last month, iRobot reached a licensing agreement with the University of Washington to commercialize underwater vehicle technology developed at the university.

Bedford-based iRobot reported a 2007 net income of $9.1 million on revenue of $249.1 million.