Ultra Maritime awarded £1.3m to support sub countermeasures

The Ministry of Defence has awarded a five-year contract to Ultra Maritime UK Ltd (UMUK) for the continued in-service support of the Submarine Acoustic Warfare Control System (SAWCS) Store Control Unit (SCU), a vital defensive capability fitted to Royal Navy submarines.

Published as a transparency notice on 17 April 2025, the £1.32 million (including VAT) direct award will run from 1 November 2025 to 31 March 2031, ensuring the continued availability and safe operation of the SAWCS SCU.

The system provides torpedo decoy capabilities by controlling the deployment of Submarine Counter-measure Acoustic Devices (SCAD) 101 and 102, essential to protecting submarines from hostile threats.

The award was made through a direct procurement procedure under Section 41 and paragraph 7 of Schedule 5 of the Procurement Act 2023, justified on the grounds of technical continuity and safety. As the original equipment manufacturer, UMUK possesses the in-depth expertise and proprietary knowledge necessary to maintain this safety-critical system.

According to the notice, changing suppliers would “result in services that are different from, or incompatible with, the existing services,” potentially causing “disproportionate technical difficulties in operation or maintenance.”

The high-integrity software and complex interfaces involved mean any disruption could risk a loss of the system’s safety qualification—an outcome that would force the withdrawal of affected submarines from service.

Support under the contract will include spares maintenance, engineering support, and obsolescence management. A technology refresh may be introduced during the contract term to mitigate risks posed by advancing technology or component obsolescence, potentially requiring contract modifications under the Procurement Act.