The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has chosen IT provider Steria to run the Land Systems Reference Centre (LSRC), a simulator for testing the interoperability of equipment.

As prime system integrator, Steria will conduct system tests and technical evaluations, under the five-year, £17m deal starting in January.

Steria was chosen to deliver an optimum service to the armed forces, said Phil Hutchinson, the MoD team’s project manager for the LSRC.

"The Steria team offer an approach which equips the LSRC to deal with the increasing demands for testing and acceptance, as it uses internationally recognised best practice methodologies to deliver a cost-effective programme," said Hutchinson.

"We are confident that with the Steria team we will have the ongoing means to support network-enabled capability, and to deliver the best possible service to our armed forces,” he said.

Steria will work with a team of core suppliers to manage and support the LSRC and its capability.

The mounting complexity of testing in an increasingly networked and joint operational environment will be managed using ITIL-based service management.

The LSRC provides an independent test and reference facility for the acceptance and support of operational communications and information systems, before and during operational deployment.