Mercury Systems Inc. (MRCY, Financials), the aerospace and defense electronics company, entered a strategic agreement with Palantir Technologies to automate material planning and factory operations supporting U.S. military programs.
The relationship is financed by the U.S. government under the Tradewind Prototype Agreement. It will initially focus on two workflows that aim to decrease manual work, simplify planning and enhance production capacity throughout Mercurys factories.
Palantir also will help Mercury create an enterprise ontology, a so-called digital twin of the companys activities. The hope is that the system will be able to merge numerous data sources into a common operating layer that could result in improved decisions and more predictable production.
The alliance might enable more efficient supply-chain and manufacturing and faster delivery of high-demand defense technologies, said Mercury Chief Executive Bill Ballhaus.
The deal also strengthens Palantirs presence in the U.S. defense industrial base, where the software business is teaming with suppliers to reduce delivery timelines and ramp up manufacturing of crucial components.
For Mercury, improved factory visibility and automation could boost profits, order execution and customer confidence if the technology results in measurable efficiency gains.
Next, investors will be looking to see how fast the two businesses get the initial workflows up and running, and whether the program grows across Mercurys production network.