Tactical radios which can get too hot when used on the battlefield are at the heart of a new challenge by HMGCC Co-Creation. The team is inviting applications from all those who could help stop high-bandwidth radios from emitting too much heat.
Why is this heat a problem? These radios play a vital role in battlefield intelligence, but heat can create detectable infrared signals and degrade hardware performance. HMGCC Co-Creation is looking for innovative solutions to enable high-power radios to run for longer, while keeping heat emissions to a minimum. The solution should be compact and something that can be retrofitted into existing hardware without creating a piece of tech which is too big or too complex.
This is a 12-week, funded challenge which asks applicants to achieve a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 demonstrator in that time. HMGCC will provide funding for time and materials, overheads and other indirect expenses for successful applications.
Technology themes
Applied research, communication systems, electronic engineering, manufacturing, material science and engineering, modelling and simulation, mechanical engineering, radio systems, systems engineering.
Briefing Call
A briefing call will be held at 1:30pm on Monday 20 July 2026: register for a place.
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This challenge is open to sole innovators, industry, academic and research organisations of all types and sizes. There is no requirement for security clearances.
Solution providers or direct collaboration from countries listed by the UK government under trade sanctions and/or arms embargoes are not eligible for HMGCC CoCreation challenges.
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Signal congestion and adversary jamming are just some of the obstacles operational staff can encounter when trying to manage secure, battlefield communications. High-power, portable radio systems are all-important to make safe communications possible. These are relied on to securely enable the transfer of tactical data, including streaming high bandwidth information and intelligence back to headquarters.
However, the increased processing power and transmission levels required for this data can generate significant waste heat. If left unmanaged, this heat can degrade equipment performance, reduce hardware lifespan, and creates a thermal signature that can be detected by enemy sensors.
HMGCC Co-Creation is seeking innovative heat dissipation solutions that can be integrated across a diverse range of software defined radio systems, from existing hardware to future platforms, to ensure operational reliability and personnel safety.
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Managing thermal loads in electronic components is a persistent engineering challenge. While traditional methods, such as thermal interface material, heat sinks, heat pipes, and active cooling (fans or liquid cooling) are effective, they each present significant trade-offs regarding size, weight, power, and reliability.
Because no single ’one size fits all’ solution exists, this challenge seeks a versatile heat transfer method that can be commoditised for broader national security and defence procurement. It should be possible to retrofit this solution into high-power radio systems while remaining adaptable for other critical user cases
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Captain Baker is commanding a unit operating in a battlefield where maintaining a low electronic and thermal signature is critical for survival. To avoid detection and targeting by adversaries, the unit must adhere to strict emission control procedures.
To maintain command control with headquarters, the unit employs a multi-band, multi waveform field software defined radio using Very High Frequency (VHF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) bands. The radio is used to send back critical information, including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data transfers.
The equipment is person portable, housed in a portable transit case (approximately 50L), designed for rapid deployment by personnel. Due to the requirement for sustained high-power transmission at 20W over extended periods of time, the radio generates significant waste heat. If used for too long it can cause drift in frequency, electronic component degradation and a thermal signature that could be picked up be an adversary.
Captain Baker needs a thermal management solution to dissipate heat effectively without needing to make the radio kit bigger in size or compromising power efficiency. Given the operational environment, the solution must be ‘plug-and-play’, requiring no specialised maintenance or additional technical training for the operator, ensuring seamless integration with existing field-deployable hardware.
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The challenge is focused on developing and commoditising heat dissipation methods for high-power software defined radio systems. Although exact models of the radio system will not be supplied, we can direct innovators to relevant similar commercial models during the project.
The outcome should be a demonstrator after a 12-week project, to minimum Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5 (technology basic validation in a relevant environment).
Essential requirements:
- Must show a working prototype, delivering this to sponsors for independent testing
- Must be small enough to integrate with person-portable, field-deployable radio equipment.
- Must add no complexity to the system from the user’s perspective
- Develop a roadmap to a low-cost solution.
- Must be applicable for a land-based solution.
- Must minimise the thermal signature without reducing electronic power efficiency.
Desirable requirements:
- Low noise solution.
- Could be applicable to maritime and air domains
- Passive cooling methods are preferred however active cooling is within scope.
Constraints:
- The existing radio system fits within a 50-litre portable container.
- The software defined radio operated in the 0 – 40 GHz domain and at 20W continuous and up to 50W for 30 seconds.
A horizon scan is not required.
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Competition opens: Monday 6 July 2026
Briefing call: Monday 20 July 2026 (register for a place here)
Clarifying questions deadline: Monday 20 July 2026
Clarifying questions published: Thursday 23 July 2026
Competition closes: Thursday 6 August 2026
Applicants notified: Wednesday 26 August 2026
Pitch Day: Thursday 3 September 2026
Pitch Day outcome: Monday 7 September 2026
Commercial onboarding begins: Friday 11 September 2026 (the successful solution provider will be expected to have availability for a one-hour onboarding call via MS Teams on this date to begin the onboarding/contractual process)
Target project kick-off: Late September 2026