MineWolf Systems
Industry | Mine action |
---|---|
Headquarters | Freienbach, Switzerland |
Number of locations | 2 |
Key people | Philipp von Michaelis (CEO) Markus Herbert Marschall (Chairman BOD) |
Products | mine clearance platforms, unmanned ground vehicles, EOD, Route clearance, clearance of cluster munitions |
Number of employees | 70 (FTE) |
Website | www.minewolf.com |
MineWolf Systems is a Swiss company, providing machines and services for the mechanical clearance of landmines and other explosive devices. Its customers are mine clearance agencies in the commercial, humanitarian as well as in the military demining field. Development and production are located in Stockach, Germany while the headquarters is based in Freienbach, Switzerland. MineWolf Systems has around 70 employees and is an independently owned organization.
History
The first design steps for the MineWolf mine clearance machine were made in 1998 based on a concept by Heinz Rath of integrating a commercial platform with tiller and mine flail tool. The first prototype was constructed by consortium under the leadership of RUAG in the production facilities of AHWI. In 2001 the first platform was developed and tested and the final MineWolf prototype was built and accredited by the German Army in 2004, the same year that MineWolf Systems GmbH was founded. In 2006 a new corporate structure was introduced and MineWolf Systems AG was created. A regional office in Bosnia and Herzegovina opened in 2006 and one year later, the Mini MineWolf (MW240) remote-controlled platform was launched. In 2008 the regional offices in Kenya and Lebanon were opened and MineWolf System’s first fully independent production facility in Stockach, Germany established. The Medium MineWolf (MW330) was developed in 2009 to meet specific military requirements for a medium-sized platform. In July 2012, Philipp von Michaelis succeeded Tobias Schmidt as CEO. In early 2013, the smallest platform in its class, the Micro MineWolf (MW50) was launched by Lieutenant General André Blattmann, during the IDEX exhibition in Abu Dhabi.
The MineWolf platforms are all designed to be fitted with various interchangeable attachments (such as the flail or robotic arm) to clear a range of explosive devices, such as landmines, improvised explosive devices and cluster munitions.
The platforms are used by humanitarian and commercial mine clearance agencies and governments in inter alia Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chile, Croatia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, South Sudan, Sudan, Turkey and Western Sahara. They are used by the British Army and the German Bundeswehr for route clearance, i.e. clearing IEDs and mines from routes in Afghanistan and by the United Nations Mine Action Service and MINUSMA peacekeepers for IED clearance in Mali.
See also
Notes
- King, Colin (2011). Jane's Mines and Mine Clearance. pp. 746–749. ISBN 978-0710629784.
References
- Army-technology.com about MineWolf Systems: Collaboration development of Germany-based AHWI and Swiss-based RUAG Land Systems
- Safety Technology Systems (STS) about MineWolf Systems: Invention and foundation of MineWolf Systems
- Jane's about MineWolf Systems : Comprehensive MineWolf support for the British Army
- The Journal of Mine Action about MineWolf Systems: MineWolf Flail and Tiller Machines: Testing the Differences Between Two Demining Technologies
- Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD): Report of the German Federal Armed Forces Technical Center for Weapons and Ammunition (WTD 91)
- Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD): U.S. Army: Project Manager for Close Combat Systems - Study Report Area Mine Clearing System (AMCS)
- Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD): Mini MineWolf Test and Evaluation, Bundeswehr Technical Center for Weapons and Ammunition (WTD 91), Germany 2007
www.gichd.org/mine-action-resources/organisations/detail/organisation/minewolf-systems-ag