From humble beginnings.
Supacat, a company co-founded in 1980 by Nick Jones and his then-business partner, David Clayton, has seen Nick Jones continue to play a pivotal role even after four decades. His influence is particularly evident in the design and development of the All-Terrain Mobility Platform (ATMP) in the early 1980s, a product that remains a cornerstone of our success.
Since 2003, Nick Ames has been the CEO and oversees daily operations, along with Nick Jones and the Board of Directors, who provide strategic oversight of technical development.
Our journey began in 1980, in a small engineering shed that later moved to a garage. Today, we are based at a large site next to Dunkeswell Airfield, demonstrating our growth and dedication. This expansion was driven by Nick Jones’ strong passion for all-terrain mobility platforms, which resulted in the development of a range of groundbreaking all-terrain vehicles.
In 1982, the MoD presented a challenge: a vehicle that could traverse a variety of terrains. This led to the birth of the first iteration of the ATMP, the Jura. The vehicle was named after the Isle of Jura, where it was demonstrated to the MoD, resulting in an order for six vehicles. In 1987, the MoD recognised the ATMP’s superiority and ordered the next iteration, a testament to our ability to adapt and innovate in response to evolving needs.
Between 1997-2001 the High Mobility Transporter Vehicle (HMTV) was designed and developed. The HMTV was officially commissioned by the British Special Forces (SF) in 2003, with subsequent adoption by various global defence forces soon thereafter.
In 2007, an Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR) was signed for vehicles to support the British Army in Afghanistan, which led to the introduction of the High Mobility Transporter Vehicle (HMTV) into the Green Army, named the Jackal and Coyote by British Soldiers. Following this there has been several iterations of the HMTV platform, reaching over 700 vehicles in service.
In the last ten years, SC Group has been formed to become the holding company for Supacat, Supacat Australia, and SC Innovation-Global has been formed to design and manufacture platforms for the civilian sector.
Supacat in Australia, celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2022 and proudly serves the Asia Pacific defence sector.
Over the last twenty years, Supacat’s engineering expertise has secured contracts outside of defence to manufacture all-terrain platforms, which now reside in the SC Innovations division, for civilian applications, including the RNLI Shannon Lifeboat Launch and Recovery System (L&RS), the Bolt wave energy device, autonomous vehicles, mobility devices, and much more.
As of 2024, Supacat is on the third iteration of the Jackal and is currently manufacturing 70 vehicles for the British Army.
