General Dynamics Land Systems announced Tuesday that the U.S. Army has signed a $714 million delivery order to upgrade an additional 174 M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tanks to the state-of-the-art M1A2 System Enhancement Package Version 3 (SEPv3) configuration.

This brings the total of M1A2 SEPv3 tanks ordered by the Army in 2018 to 274 (more than three brigades of tanks).

The M1A2 SEPv3 configuration features technological advancements in communications, reliability, sustainment and fuel efficiency, plus upgraded armor. The delivery order is part of an Army Requirements Contract signed in December 2017 through which the Army can upgrade up to 435 M1A1 Abrams tanks to the M1A2 SEPv3 configuration.

“We’re proud to help the Army provide world-class combat capability to Armored Brigade Combat Teams,” says Don Kotchman, Vice President and General Manager of General Dynamics Land Systems U.S. Market. “This delivery order, along with our previous orders, means our production line will be rolling at a steady rate through 2021.”

Work on this delivery order will be performed at Land Systems locations in Scranton, Pa., and Tallahassee, Fla., and at the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio, the only operational tank plant in the country.

Land Systems is a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD). General Dynamics Land Systems provides innovative design, engineering, technology, production and full life-cycle support for land combat vehicles around the globe. The company’s extensive experience, customer-first focus and seasoned supply chain network provide unmatched capabilities to the U.S. military and its allies.

Except for the exterior, today’s SEPv3 would be almost unrecognizable to the tankers who served on its earliest incarnation.

The M1A2 SEP V3 retains the layout of the M1A2 MBT with the driver’s cab at the forward centre hull, turret in the middle and power-pack at the rear. The tank integrates the line-replaceable module technology to enable easy maintenance of the fleet.

The tank integrates joint tactical radio system (JTRS) handheld, man-pack, and small form fit radio to ensure network readiness and interoperation with future brigade combat teams (BCTs).

The MBT measures 9.7m-long, 3.7m-wide and 2.4m-high, and is manned by a crew of four, including a driver, a commander, a loader and a gunner.

The newest Abrams is also more heavily armored than previous versions, which necessitates improvements in the power system and suspension.