Partnership: Daimler Truck, Soframe and Lambert Defence for Belgian Military Logistics

Daimler Truck AG, French defence specialist Soframe and Belgian company Lambert Defence have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), Daimler Truck announced on 20 July. The agreement establishes a strategic alliance for the Belgian Ministry of Defence’s Tactical Logistic Trucks Program (TLTP). The major project is intended to comprehensively modernise and expand the Belgian armed forces’ logistics vehicle fleet with highly innovative tactical transport platforms.

Combining Expertise

Through the partnership, the three companies are combining their respective capabilities to offer a technologically advanced, robust and readily deployable system solution. Each partner contributes complementary strengths to the consortium.

Daimler Truck provides the technological foundation with its globally proven, highly mobile military vehicle platforms and highly scalable industrial production capacity.

Soframe contributes its extensive expertise in ballistic and mine protection. Its proposed protected cab solution has already been successfully qualified for use by the Belgian armed forces.

As a strong local partner, Lambert Defence will be responsible for vehicle integration in Belgium and will contribute its in-depth market knowledge and specialised capabilities for long-term life-cycle support.

The Arocs – with an armoured cab (left) or an unarmoured cab – could be one of the platforms contributed by Daimler Truck to its cooperation with Soframe and Lambert Defence. (© Daimler Truck)

Strengthening the Belgian Defence Industry

A central objective of the partnership is to significantly strengthen Belgium’s defence industry. The industrial concept envisages locating final vehicle assembly, the integration of chassis and superstructures, and the production of protected cabs directly in Belgium. All life-cycle support and maintenance activities are also to be carried out locally.

This is expected to create highly skilled jobs, promote technology transfer and provide the Belgian armed forces with the greatest possible degree of logistical autonomy. As a next step, the partners will analyse the detailed tender requirements in order to finalise a tailored and highly competitive bid for the forthcoming procurement procedure.

Belgium has already begun modernising and expanding its logistics vehicle fleet. In 2021, DAF was awarded a contract to deliver 879 two- and four-axle logistics trucks, for which the Czechoslovak Group’s Tatra supplied chassis and protected cabs. Deliveries were completed by 2025.

According to industry sources, the second phase involves around 1,000 logistics trucks. The competition has not yet begun, and no procurement timetable is therefore currently known.

Potential Daimler Truck platforms include the Arocs, shown in the photograph, for high-payload logistics missions; the Zetros for logistics operations in difficult terrain; and the Unimog for lighter tactical transport and specialised tasks.

Gerhard Heiming