Modernization Continues at Lake City, Radford Ammo Plants
DID has covered the U.S. military’s small caliber ammunition shortages before, and explained the manufacturing, outsourcing, and modernization efforts under way to address it.
As a follow-up, Alliant Techsystems subsidiaries have recently received $38.1 million from The U.S. Army Field Support Command in Rock Island, IL, in order to modernize a pair of facilities associated with small-caliber ammunition manufacture.
Alliant Lake City Small Caliber Ammunition Co., LLC in Independence, MO received a delivery order amount of $17 million as part of an $86.7 million firm-fixed-price contract for Modernization Equipment at the Lake City Ammunition Plant.
As noted in DID’s earlier article, Lake City is the only manufacturing complex left in the USA for military small-caliber ammunition. Work will be performed in Independence, MO and is expected to be complete by Sept. 30, 2008. This was a sole source contract initiated on Nov. 8, 2004 (DAAA09-99-D-0016).
Alliant Ammunition and Powder Co., LLC in Radford, VA received a $21.1 modification to a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the Modernization of the Radford Army Ammunition Plant.
After Alliant Techsystems of Hopkins, MN acquired Hercules Powder and its manufacturing facilities in 1995, they made a major commitment to the smokeless gunpowder business and consolidated all powder manufacturing operations for military and civilian uses at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant in Radford, VA. The company invested $8 million updating the Radford operation into a state-of-the-art production facility at the time. Today, Alliant Techsystems produces military propellants for the U.S. department of Defense, manufactures more than a dozen powders for civilian reloading, and makes 60 powders for commercial ammo manufacturers at this same facility.
Work on this contract will be performed in Radford, VA and is expected to be complete by June 30, 2009. This was a sole source contract initiated on Aug. 30, 2004 (DAAA09-03-E-0001).
