L3Harris expands Huntsville solid rocket motor facility
L3Harris Technologies, headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, USA, has announced the expansion to its Additive Manufacturing Facility – South (AMF– South), in Huntsville, Alabama. The facility is focused on the production of solid rocket motor components, such as nozzles, exit cones, aft closures and cases.
“Solid rocket motors remain essential to the vast majority of critical defence programmes that protect our communities, military and allies,” said Ken Bedingfield, president, Aerojet Rocketdyne, L3Harris. “Our growth in Huntsville represents another significant investment we are making to boost production capacity of critical components, and we’re proud that they are being made in Alabama.”
3Harris invested over $20 million in renovations to support the 35,000 m2 AMF-South facility, which is designed to be scalable. AMF-South features a range of equipment, including hydraulic presses, autoclaves, tape-wrap systems and composite machining, that will help deliver high-quality inert components faster and with greater precision. The company’s Title III Defense Production Act cooperative agreement with the US Department of Defense helped to fund additional equipment and tooling purchases.
AMF-South is currently supporting programs such as the Standard Missile, Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System and Javelin, with plans to support additional programs. Expansion efforts have already resulted in approximately 40 new jobs for the area, and the company expects to create more than 100 additional jobs to support operations at the site over the next few years.
L3Harris’ expanded AMF-South facility complements the existing 12,500 m2 Advanced Manufacturing Facility – North in Huntsville, which opened in 2019.
www.l3harris.com
