Kongsberg Gruppen (lit.: "The Kongsberg Group") is Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

's major defence contractor and maritime automation supplier, located in Kongsberg

Kongsberg

is a town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is located at the southern end of the traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsberg....

, a former mining town.

KOG consists of four business areas, Kongsberg Defence Systems (KDS), Kongsberg Protech Systems (KPS), Kongsberg Oil & Gas Technologies (KOGT) and Kongsberg Maritime (KM)

Kongsberg Maritime

Kongsberg Maritime is a Norwegian technology enterprise within the Kongsberg Gruppen . Kongsberg Maritime deliver systems for positioning, surveying, navigation and automation to merchant vessels and offshore installations...

. KDS is a supplier of defence and aerospace-related systems and KPS delivers weapon control systems with PROTECTOR Remote Weapon Station

Remote Weapon Station

A remote weapon station, also known as a remote weapon system, is a weaponized system for light and medium caliber weapons which can be installed on ground combat vehicle or sea and air-based combat platforms. Such equipment is used on modern military vehicles, as it allows a gunner to remain in...

. KOGT provides technology, products and services for surveillance, integration, analysis, simulation, quality assurance, and governance of drilling and production operations and KM delivers products and systems for positioning, navigation and automation to merchant vessels and offshore installations, as well as products and systems for seabed surveying and monitoring, and for fishing vessels and fisheries research.

History

The company was established in 1814 as Kongsberg Vaabenfabrik (KV) (lit.: "Kongsberg Weapons Factory"), a name which remained virtually unchanged until 1987, when it took the name Norsk Forsvarsteknologi (NFT) (lit.: "Norwegian Defence Technology") after restructuring due to the sale of all civilian activity and financial troubles. The name changed again in 1995 to the present Kongsberg Gruppen following its listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange

Oslo Stock Exchange

The Oslo Stock Exchange serves as the main market for trading in the shares of Norwegian companies. It opens at 9:00am and closes 5:30pm local time...

 in 1993. In 1974, a Canadian subsidiary known as Kongsberg Mesotech Ltd

Kongsberg Mesotech

Kongsberg Mesotech Ltd, based in Port Coquitlam, BC, Canada, is a part of Kongsberg Maritime, a subsidiary of Norwegian industrial concern Kongsberg Gruppen...

 was established for the development and manufacturing of underwater surveillance systems.

In 1987, the company was part of the Toshiba-Kongsberg scandal, which involved a subsidiary of Toshiba

Toshiba

is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...

 and the Kongsberg Vaapenfabrikk. The two provided the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 with technology (Toshiba milling machines and Kongsberg numerical-control computers) that could be used to produce quiet submarine

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...

 propeller

Propeller

A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...

s, in violation of the CoCom

CoCom

CoCom is an acronym for Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls. CoCom was established by Western bloc powers in the first five years after the end of World War II, during the Cold War, to put an arms embargo on COMECON countries.CoCom ceased to function on March 31, 1994, and the...

 agreement. The US always relied on the fact that the Soviets had noisy boats. Providing the USSR with technology that could make their subs harder to find and track was perceived as a significant threat to America's security.

See also

• CROWS
• Kongsberg Colt
  Kongsberg Colt
  The Kongsberg Colt is a nickname used for Colt M1911 pistols produced under license by the Norwegian factory Kongsberg Vaapenfabrikk.- History :...
  
  
• Krag-Jørgensen
  Krag-Jørgensen
  The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating bolt action rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen in the late 19th century. It was adopted as a standard arm by Denmark, the United States of America and Norway...
  
  
• Kongsberg Spacetec
  Kongsberg Spacetec
  Kongsberg Spacetec is a subsidiary company of Kongsberg Gruppen in Norway. The company is asupplier of satellite ground stations and systems for SAR and optical sensors...
  
  
• List of oldest companies
• M1 Abrams TUSK Kit (M1 Abrams tank with Kongsberg Gruppen remote-control MG turret)

External links

• Corporate website
• Kongsberg Maritime
• Kongsberg Defence Systems
• Kongsberg Protech Systems
• Kongsberg Oil & Gas Technologies
• Kongsberg Drilling Management Solutions AS

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