CP Technologies Aims for Deeper Engagement with Defense Market

With the new year, Chassis Plans is changing its name to CP Technologies. The company, which provides ruggedized computer hardware systems, servers, and LCD displays points to its defense market roots, which it intends to further grow. The moniker better represents the company’s focus on serving those in harsh military and industrial environments.

“We wanted to communicate that our brand is combat proven, since that’s what we’ve been doing for 20 years, sending ruggedized computers into combat environments,” said Mike McCormack, president of CP Technologies.

At the same time, the military and defense markets are offering more opportunity for suppliers hoping to grow a foothold with manufacturers in the sector. “For many years, defense primes were manufacturers of hardware, as well as service and integration,” McCormack explained. “That has become more difficult with the complexity of weapons platforms and the breadth of capability it takes to be everything from building aircraft technology, and servicing and support to manufacture that.” More and more these contractors have turned to commercial off the shelf (COTS) offerings, he added. 

CP Technologies is moving toward this new “complete solution” focus in order to meet the needs of its military customers. “We found a niche market in ruggedized COTS solutions,” said McCormack. “We want to provide complete, integrated portable solutions and complete rack solutions.” These customers are trying to address to high cost of customized products, as well as challenges with achieving cross-platform compatibility, he added.

These systems will include Portable Computing Systems (PCS), Small Tactical Transit Case (STTC), Medium Tactical Transit Case (MTTC) and Complete Rack Solutions (CRS). CP will also continue to provide the separate components that it has offered in the past. 

Complete solutions offer a variety of benefits, especially reducing the cost and complexity of ongoing service and support of systems. “As the Department of Defense (DoD), you have a software system that is configured around hardware and that is continuously changing so there is continual ongoing cost to maintaining it,” said McCormack. “By maintaining stable revision control, they can greatly reduce the cost of maintaining systems.”

In addition to ensuring that compatibility and revision control is maintained, CP Technologies will be certifying that its products comply with the Trade Agreements Act(TAA). “People are driving more to TAA compliance and the need for it because they are concerned with intellectual property (IP) theft by adversaries, both China and Russia,” McCormack said. “We are acutely aware of making sure our sources of supply are TAA compliant.”

Late last year, CP Technologies (then Chassis Plans) was acquired by Aeronautics Ltd. of Israel, a move which started the company’s journey toward its latest evolution. “The acquisition of Chassis Plans by Aeronautics is allowing the natural evolution of the company into CP Technologies through investment that allows it to expand its R&D, product offering and marketing activities on worldwide basis,” McCormack said. “We will incorporate a broader offering of product, complete integrated solutions, and the addition of data links that give our customers a broader product choice as well as a complete solution instead of just components.”