§ Mr. Bestasked the Secretary of State for Defence which companies were asked to tender for the transmission system of the MCV 80 vehicle; if any preference was given to United Kingdom companies; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. LeeThe transmission system for MCV 80 armoured vehicle is one of several main assemblies being provided under subcontracts to the MOD's prime contractor, GKN Defence Industries. The system is an American design from Detroit Diesel Allison manufactured under licence in the United Kingdom by Perkins Engines. Perkins, which is responsible to GKN as the design authority for the complete MCV 80 power pack—engine plus transmission—selected the DDA design competitively, evaluating it against designs proposed by British industry. Criteria for the avaluation were the degree of technical confidence in the ability of each design to meet a rigorous performance specification against a tight timescale, and competitive pricing. The Perkins recommendation in favour of the DDA design was endorsed by GKN as part of its prime contractor responsibility. Production of the transmission system is now well under way.