The Australian Army has ordered two Kalmar rough terrain container handlers, becoming the first non-US military force to use the machines.

The value of the contract has not been revealed. The Australian Army would not comment.

Kalmar has so far delivered more than 130 rough terrain container handlers to the US Army, with the 100th unit being commissioned in August.

Developed in close co-operation with the US Army, the machine is designed to handle containers in extreme conditions. Based on Kalmar's reach stacker designs, the four-wheel-drive, four-wheel-steer machines can operate in mud, sand and up to 1.8 metres of salt water.

The US Army Tank Automotive and Armaments Command, which has sole rights to the military version of the rough terrain container handler, approved the Australian contract. Kalmar, in a statement, said several more such deals were expected in the future.

The US Army contact was signed in April 2000 and is a "requirement type contract" covering deliveries between 2001 and 2005. The contract is expected to involve 500 units. The first 16 machines were delivered to a US Army base in Washington in June and July last year.

Kalmar's rough terrain container handler series is produced in a military (RTCH) version and a commercial (RT) version. The military version is fitted with a moving operator's cab and a folding boom assembly to reduce transport height. This makes it possible to transport the machine by air, sea, rail or road without requiring disassembly.

Marketing and sales of RT machines in North and South America are handled by Kalmar's RT Centre in Texas. In Europe, sales will begin through a specially-selected dealer network.

** To view a photograph of Kalmar's new rough terrain container handler, click on the headline of this story. **