Lockheed Martin Acquires OV3D Developer 3Dsolve

Major aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced that it has acquired simulation learning and 'serious game' company 3Dsolve, developer of the Operational Views in 3D (OV3D) visual simulation tool. Both 3Dsolve and Lockheed Martin worked together on OV3D, which was developed in order to assist the US Army in creating scenarios describing communications networks in a modern battlespace environment. The software is based on the open source Croquet development platform, which is designed for large-scale, collaborative, simulation-based training environments. While terms of the acquisition were not revealed, Lockheed Martin did note that 3Dsolve's employees and software products will remain based in Cary, NC, and will be “fully integrated” into Lockheed Martin's Simulation, Training & Support division, which supplies simulation and training solutions, military logistics support and test equipment to the US government and international customers. The division's president, Dale Bennett, called the acquisition of 3DSolve a “solid strategic fit,” adding that it “will strengthen our ongoing initiatives in the rapidly growing training and simulation market, allowing us to provide a broader array of solutions and services to our expanding customer base.” Former 3DSolve CEO Richard Boyd, now the director of the Lockheed Martin 3D Learning Systems, further commented, “With our experience in gaming, visualization and training combined with Lockheed Martin's expertise and resources, we intend to be the leader in simulation-based learning.”