NIMDA, a dynamic company specializing in AFV upgrading projects, was founded in 1972 and first became known through its NIMDA SHOET Armoured Personnel Designed on the concept lines of the Soviet BTR-152, the 6 x 6 wheeled, 8 ton APC has a hull of welded 8-14mm plated steel providing good protection against light infantry weapons of low caliber. Its superiority over the obsolete Soviet troop car carrier BTR-152VI is obviously marked by the Detroit Diesel General Motors 6 cylinder V-53 model water cooled engine developing 172 hp at 2800 rpm, while the old Soviet ZIL-123 6-cylinder in-line could only develop 110 rpm (original ZIL-151 truck, later replaced by the ZIL-157 upgraded version). The other asset of the SHOET is its GM Allison MT-643 automatic hydromech torque converter transmission, sharply contrasting with the Soviet manual gearbox requiring the arduous work of constant gear changing (5 forward, 1 reverse). A fuel saving lockup at 42 km/h device is installed.

The Shoet has passed official tests with the IDF, in itself a remarkable achievement by a private venture, which clearly proves that the technicians were up to date with IDF specifications (usually very stringent). A late model design Mk. III is reportedly in advanced development stage for production.

The 70 man team, mostly engineers and technicians, is highly experienced in armoured fighting vehicle work, design and planning. All were involved for many years in the ambitious tank rebuilding programmers of the IDF and have since implemented their experiences in new upgrading projects.