As part of on-going product range development, Barum & Dewar are now able to supply the latest 19" rack case products from Zarges. The Mitraset Racklite and Racklite Basic cases are a natural development of the high performance Zarges Mitraset 19" rack case. Drawing on years of experience protecting 19" electronic equipment, Zarges have produced a lightweight solution while still achieving the key qualification levels that the Mitraset container is renowned for.

These new cases are suitable for equipment weights below 50kg and up to a total of 12U, where weights and heights exceed this guide the field proven Mitraset Classic Case provides the solution.

This continues the longstanding close working relationship Barum & Dewar share with Zarges. This experience and partnership is part of the unique service Barum & Dewar provide all our customers. Please contact B & D for assistance and further product information on the Racklite case and other Zarges products.

Barum and Dewar are working as sub-contractors to KBR as part of an MOD contract to ensure the latest aircraft refuelling kit and equipment needed in Afghanistan reaches the troops protected and ready for action.

KBR awarded Barum and Dewar the contract on the strength of its design and manufacturing capability, along with its reputation for quality. B & D were tasked to come up with a protective packaging solution for the newly developed Joint Operational Fuel Systems Project (JOFS) and “Light forces Kits”. These versatile kits enabling the equipment to be dropped by air behind enemy lines ready for small teams to assemble in readiness for ground forces to move forward by land and re-fuel. The system is compatible with current Air Portable Fuel Containers (APFC) and can be used with either Aviation or Diesel fuel, depending what assets require re-fuelling.

The solution needed to be robust and able to withstand challenging environments while meeting stringent operational requirements. The equipment will be used in places such as Afghanistan to refuel aircraft tactically and efficiently – sometimes behind enemy lines.

Barum and Dewar's experienced design team met with KBR Engineers and developed a series of containers to securely house the complex parts. KBR's new JOFS kit incorporates high performance pumps, Power Packs, quick assembly fittings, monitoring devices, tools supply hoses, spares and filter systems.

The main challenge for B & D with this project was to design and manufacture a fully portable container for the Small Container Convoy Refuelling System (SCCRS) equipment – a main supply hose which splits the one inlet supply of 2.5 inches diameter into 7 separate fuel lines that terminate into nozzles specifically for hi-flow that can be used for re-fuelling multiple vehicles at the same time.

ALMA recently took its first steps to completion with Barum & Dewar's bespoke design and manufacture solutions being used to safely transport various ALMA satellite and telescopic sub-assemblies to the plains of Chile. and the final components are being shipped to South America with the help of Barum & Dewar containers to finish calibration of the revolutionary telescope ready for scientific observations in 2011.

ALMA's primary function will be to observe and image, with unprecedented clarity, the enigmatic cold regions of the universe. These regions are optically dark, yet shine brightly in the millimetre portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Photo Credit ESO/C. Malin

Barum and Dewar continue to produce bespoke aluminium containers to house BAE Systems world renowned sea mine disposal system, Archerfish. Barum and Dewar first designed and qualified the shipping container for Archerfish over five years ago.

Archerfish is a technically advanced piece of equipment used as an expendable neutraliser to dispose of sea mines. Up to four times faster than conventional remotely-controlled mine disposal vehicles, Archerfish brings benefits of simplified logistics and reduced through-life costs.

BAE Systems Archerfish Product Manager David Jackson,

Ensuring Archerfish remains undamaged during transit and storage is vital to the operational effectiveness of the mine disposal system and the Barum and Dewar container plays an important part in that process.

The protective packaging that Barum and Dewar designed had to safeguard the Archerfish vehicle including its twin mid-body propulsors which are vital in providing its exceptional manoeuvring capabilities. This capability enables it to traverse the target to obtain images from a variety of angles providing the controller with detailed identification information prior to positioning the vehicle to dispose of the mine when the vehicle's warhead is detonated. Barum and Dewar also had to ensure that the container was robust enough to prevent shock or vibration during transit from affecting its fibre-optic link – the vital mode of communication throughout its mission between the platform and vehicle. To reacquire the target, Archerfish activates its short range sonar and video link, transmitting sonar imagery and video pictures back to its controller for inspection and identification.

Barum and Dewar Ltd, Managing Director, David Frame:

For more than five years Barum & Dewar's in-house designed and manufactured aluminium containers have been providing a safe storage and transportation solution for BAE System's highly capable Archerfish equipment. The latest contract reaffirms Barum & Dewar's position as one of the UK' premier suppliers of complete packaging solutions and a key partner to many Prime Defence Contractors.

Barum & Dewar's on-going collaboration with SSTL will see the launch of the NigeriaSat-2 and NigeriaSat-X satellites into orbit later this year.

The project on behalf of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) will be launched by a Dnepr vehicle from Yasny, Russia on 29 October 2010.

NigeriaSat-2 is the most advanced small satellite ever to be launched, defining new standards in Earth observation and avionics, for this reason Barum and Dewar were chosen to provide a packaging solution with shock and environmental protection.

Barry Laffar, Senior Mechanical AIT Engineer, Surrey Satellite Technology:

The latest flight case is one of many supplied by Barum & Dewar for SSTL satellite missions, including the largest so far, GIOVE-A, launched for the European Space Agency in 2005. We have an excellent relationship with Barum & Dewar, working with them from initial concept through to manufacture. They consistently provide good quality products delivered on time and to an agreed budget.

NigeriaSat-2's mission objectives include providing high resolution maps of the entire area of Nigeria every four months, together with monthly monitoring of Nigerian crops for food supply security.

Barum & Dewar have worked with clients within the aerospace sector for over 10 years and have developed a clear understanding of the needs and requirements associated with this market. Our knowledge and experience are used to design and manufacture highly engineered transit and storage containers for satellites, radar systems and propulsion carts.

Barum and Dewar remain the preferred supplier of container solutions to many of the UK's leading aerospace companies who have come to recognise our record of delivering best in class solutions time and again.

Photo credit : SSTL