Description
KNDS – How a Good Idea Became the Mungo
Every successful product starts with a good idea. At KNDS, it was the vision to develop a compact, airborne vehicle for the German Armed Forces. The chassis of the small municipal vehicle Multicar served as the technical basis. The requirements were demanding: The vehicle had to be armored yet compact enough to fit two vehicles into a CH-53 transport helicopter.
The first prototype met the technical specifications—but during the presentation to the German Armed Forces, a critical weakness became apparent. While the concept was well received, the vehicle’s appearance was not. The message was clear:
“We cannot expect our soldiers to use a vehicle like this. It looks too fragile. Develop a design that conveys protection, robustness, and confidence.”
That marked the beginning of our collaboration with KNDS. The project manager in charge, R. T., candidly explained the situation to us. At the same time, he made it clear that the company did not want to invest in another development effort without first knowing whether the chosen approach would prove successful. Our proposal was therefore pragmatic: As a first step, we would develop a viable design concept based on the existing technology at a fixed price. Only once this concept proved successful would the next development steps follow.
KNDS gave us the green light. Our task was not to change the technology—but to give it a face. A vehicle for military operations must exude safety at first glance. It must appear robust, convey a sense of protection, and earn the trust of its crew. These were precisely the qualities at the heart of our design.
We presented the design concept we had developed to the Bundeswehr. This time, the reaction was unequivocally positive. The new look was a hit—and the project received approval to move on to the next stages of development. The concept gave rise to the Mungo, which was produced in several hundred units and became a successful vehicle program for KNDS.
For Target Design, this project also marked the beginning of an active collaboration with the defense industry. When the project manager in charge later moved to Rheinmetall, this led to further joint development projects.
Design doesn’t just determine how a product looks—it often determines whether a good technical idea actually becomes a reality.
The Result
Thanks to its compact dimensions, two vehicles can be transported simultaneously in a CH-53. The Mungo thus meets key requirements for mobility, flexibility, and rapid deployment in demanding operational scenarios.
However, the first in-house version of KMW’s armored Multicar failed to impress the customer. It simply seemed too fragile:
