Major order for the production and delivery of new field kitchens

Kärcher Futuretech will be the partner and supplier of the German Armed Forces for modern mobile field kitchens to provide catering for their task forces. The specialist in mobile supply systems has successfully won the tender for a contract worth hundreds of millions of Euros, which was published in February 2019 by the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) in Koblenz. The order covers a total of up to 400 field kitchens to be supplied by Kärcher Futuretech to the German Armed Forces over a period of 16 years.

"This is the largest single order in the history of our company so far", says Hartmut Jenner, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Management of Alfred Kärcher SE & Co. KG. "Mobile catering systems are still one of the core products Futuretech supplies, among others, to the German Armed Forces and other civil defence and disaster control organisations".

With this procurement project "Mobile Field Kitchen", the German Armed Forces intend to replace their field kitchen TFK 250, which has been in use since the 1980s. The "field kitchen of the future" will be characterized by highest mobility and will be equipped for operation in various climate zones of the world, taking into account modern food regulations.

Key requirements include an integrated drinking water supply, equipment for personal hygiene, waste water treatment and waste collection, comprehensive equipment for food preparation, storage and refrigeration of food, as well as the protection of the entire system against environmental influences. Like the previous model, the TFK 250, the new field kitchen will be suitable for preparing meals for up to 250 persons. The framework agreement initially requires the delivery of a first system by Kärcher Futuretech, which will be tested by the German Armed Forces technically, tactically and logistically in addition to low temperature and high temperature testing.

With this project, Kärcher Futuretech is continuing a successful chapter in its own company history: the predecessor field kitchen TFK 250 was developed by Kärcher for the German Armed Forces in the 1980s. The subsequent record order from 1990 was a significant economic milestone for the company which offered them the opportunity to prove their competence in the field of mobile supply systems even then. Since then Kärcher Futuretech has built and sold a total of around 4,060 field kitchens worldwide.