Thales Underwater Systems or TUS (formerly Thomson Sintra ASM, Thomson CSF DASM and then Thomson Marconi Sonar) is a subsidiary of the French defense electronics specialist Thales Group. It was founded in 2001 and belongs to its naval division. It specializes in the development and manufacturing of sonar systems for submarines, surface warships and aircraft, as well as communications masts and systems for submarines. Its headquarters are located in Sophia Antipolis, France.
Thales Underwater Systems is made up of three branches: TUS SAS in France with sites in Brest and Aubagne; TUS Ltd. in the United Kingdom with sites in Cheadle Heath and Templecombe; and finally TUS Pty in Australia. It nonetheless operates as a single company.
The company generated €400 million in revenue in 2006 and employed around 2,100 people.
Background
In 1996, Thomson Marconi Sonar was formed by the merger of the sonar systems businesses of French defence electronics specialist Thomson-CSF and British company GEC-Marconi after the payment of a balance by the latter. It was 50.1% owned by Thomson-CSF and 49.9% by GEC-Marconi. Denis Ranque was appointed CEO of the joint venture. The new company would head 3 operational entities:
- The French entity, Thomson Sintra, brought in by Thomson-CSF, was the European leader in defence-related sonar systems and the world's second after Lockheed Martin Loral, with annual sales of 1.5 billion francs, split between submarine sonars (35%), anti-submarine warfare systems (27%), airborne sonars (18%) and mine warfare (15%).
Today, Thales' site in Brest is essentially dedicated to research and development. With some 1,000 engineers out of the 1,600 employees as of 2013, the four main areas of activity are mine warfare, submarine warfare, electronic warfare, and airborne maritime patrol and maritime surveillance.