The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has detailed a $215.6 million agreement with Aerojet Rocketdyne (AR) the agency maintains will bolster the solid rocket motors supply chain.
DoD’s Office of Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) initiated the pact to expand and modernize AR’s facilities in Camden, Arkansas; Huntsville, Alabama; and Orange County, Virginia, the sites of rocket propulsion systems manufacturing.
“The Office of Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization is moving forward with appropriate urgency to support strategic industrial sectors crucial to protecting national security,” Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said. “This critical investment will modernize rocket propellant and motor production in the United States, in addition to creating technical and skilled labor jobs at multiple domestic facilities.”
Per the DoD, the rocket systems propel DoD missiles, missile defense interceptors and space launch vehicles, and national security satellites used in civil and commercial applications.
The earmarked funds will address a scope that includes modernizing manufacturing processes at the company’s facilities; consolidating production lines; purchasing equipment; building systems to process data; and increasing production and delivery speed for Javelins, Stingers, and the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS).
According to the DoD, the MCEIP office’s mission is to prioritize and address supply chain and industrial challenges identified by the DoD and other stakeholders.