MoD Shoeburyness to be upgraded

QinetiQ and the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) have announced a £20 million investment to upgrade the Environmental Test Centre (ETC) at the MoD Shoeburyness range, the company announced on 2 January.

The investment, which is part of a programme to modernise UK test and evaluation capabilities, will enable a higher volume of work to be carried out at Shoeburyness and improve efficiencies.

The ETC provides facilities and technology to enable customers to safely assess how their live ordnance, munitions and explosive assets react when subjected to various environment and climatic conditions.

Using remotely controlled test equipment, the ETC can reproduce shock, vibration and impact effects under extreme temperatures and conduct climatic tests such as humidity, driving rain, immersion, sand and dust. Radiographic equipment is also used to carry out non-destructive inspection throughout the testing programme.

The investment will fund new, refurbished and expanded test buildings, the replacement of ageing and obsolete equipment and the recruitment of additional specialist engineers to strengthen the technical team’s capability.

Steve Fitz-Gerald, managing director maritime, land and weapons, QinetiQ, said: ‘The investment will allow for a more varied number of tests and increase the capacity to meet the demand for this work, providing value for money to our customers.’

QinetiQ manages MoD Shoeburyness on behalf of the MoD.