Estonian company Rantelon designs and manufactures radio-frequency and electronic systems for military, law-enforcement, telecoms and industrial customers, with electronics, software, mechanics and RF engineering all done in-house.
Rantelon was founded in 1995 by specialists from Tallinn University of Technology and employs more than 60 people at its site in Pääsküla. Its export markets are the Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Sweden and Norway, and its customers include defence forces, law enforcement, telecom operators, industrial firms, robotics developers and space organisations.
Demand for high-frequency systems is rising faster than the supply of partners
Modern defence, security and communication systems depend on electronic components that are both more complex and more reliable than their predecessors. Finding a partner able to carry a product through high-precision design, prototyping, testing and manufacturing without giving up flexibility or confidentiality is difficult, particularly in radio-frequency work where measurement capability decides what can be built at all.
Research, design and production in one facility
Rantelon’s structure is vertically integrated. Research and development, design, prototyping, testing and manufacturing all take place in-house, which gives the company control over each stage rather than assembling a product from subcontracted parts. Its research and production facility includes a radio-frequency anechoic chamber, the measurement environment that makes it possible to develop and verify antenna, radio and electronic-warfare systems quickly.
That capability is what sits behind products such as drone detectors, jammers and electronic warfare equipment, and behind the company’s ability to respond to a customer requirement without waiting for a third party’s test slot.
Counter-drone technology from a 30-year-old company
Rantelon has become one of Estonia’s better known high-tech manufacturers, and its radio systems are used to protect airspace, secure communications and support defence operations. In 2020 the company, working with Tampere University, won the European Defence Agency’s Defence Innovation Prize for full-duplex radio technology intended to improve defences against drone swarms. Rantelon has since launched a fourth-generation counter-drone jammer.
“Rantelon, as a tech company, have maintained its 30-year success by focusing on RF and Microwave electronics. To remain competitive on a global scale, you must keep a sharp focus to sustain your innovative edge.”
Karl Taklaja, CEO at Rantelon
Estonia’s electronics sector combines contract manufacturers with specialist design and RF houses, which is why defence programmes in several countries source components and subsystems from Estonian suppliers.
FACTS
Founded: 1995
Employees: 60+
Location: Pääsküla, Estonia
Capabilities: electronics, software, mechanics and radio-frequency design, prototyping, testing and in-house manufacturing
Main export markets: Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway
Award: 2020 EDA Defence Innovation Prize, with Tampere University
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