L3Harris is building the factories of the future at its Camden, Arkansas site to support the increased demand for solid rocket motors.
L3Harris has marked another key milestone as it continues to build on production increases of solid rocket motors for critical defense programs. Following the recent completion of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) assessment at L3Harris’ Camden, Arkansas, site, the Defense Department has authorized L3Harris to begin construction of new state-of-the-art solid rocket motor manufacturing facilities in the state.
"With the NEPA assessment now complete, we’re eager to move out on construction. We are working closely with the government to get these new buildings operational as quickly as we can,” said Byron Lee, Cooperative Agreement Program Manager, Aerojet Rocketdyne, L3Harris. “We have already increased solid rocket motor production across a range of programs, and expect both our capital investment combined with the substantial investment by the U.S. government will enable us to continue to increase quantity and speed of delivery.”
The effort is part of a $215.6M cooperative agreement the company signed with the Department of Defense (DoD) to support increased demand for tactical missiles, including Javelin, Stinger and the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS). L3Harris is building new facilities at its Camden, Arkansas, and Orange County, Virginia, locations to support the increased demand. Earlier this year, the federal government identified the need for NEPA reviews at the Camden and Orange County sites prior to construction. NEPA assessments are a statutory requirement for all federally-funded activities.
Lee credited the cooperative agreement effort for already having contributed to production improvements, noting how new tooling and equipment helped increase production of Javelin motors. The company went from being hundreds of motors behind, to now delivering ahead of contract for Javelin.
“While there remains work to be done, we’re pleased with improvements we’ve seen since L3Harris acquired Aerojet Rocketdyne,” said Lee.
With the NEPA assessment complete, L3Harris may now begin preparing the land at its Camden site for new roads, installation of utilities and construction of new facilities. While the environmental assessments were ongoing, L3Harris finalized building designs for Camden, developed plans for undeveloped property across multiple sites and purchased new equipment.
Building for the Future
“These new facilities will truly be factories of the future, incorporating cutting-edge technologies that enhance efficiency and reduce costs,” said Lee. “We’ve already started to receive some of the long lead equipment like casting chambers and mixers that are necessary to drive this additional volume.”
In Camden, a new 60,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art GMLRS facility will consolidate production, which previously took place between three buildings to now under one roof, reducing the distance motors travel by 80%. In addition to the new GMLRS facility, the company is also building new propellant processing facilities, which will provide an additional 20,000 sq. ft. of dedicated manufacturing space to support a range of critical DoD programs, including Stinger.
While expanding operations for GMLRS production, the company is also investing to increase production of Stinger motors in Camden. L3Harris makes both the launch and flight motors for this important air defense missile. To meet the increased demand, the company is purchasing modernized equipment to increase production in Camden.
Elevated demand, along with company and customer investments to modernize manufacturing capabilities, have led to a significant increase in solid rocket motor production at the company’s Camden site. From 2021-2023, the site increased production by more than 60%. Today, the Camden site produces more than 100,000 solid rocket motors a year, from motors that fit in the palm of your hand to those longer than an SUV.
“This modernization effort with the DoD builds upon the solid foundation we’ve established in delivering the critical propulsion needed for the nation’s defense,” said Jim Watson, Camden Site Lead, Aerojet Rocketdyne, L3Harris.
Concurrently, the company is also finalizing plans for expansion at its site in Orange County, Virginia. The Orange County site expansion, which includes transitioning energetic work on the Javelin program currently being performed at the company’s Camden location, will provide a dedicated manufacturing and testing space, new casting and final assembly buildings, a control room and other key functions to support modern domestic solid rocket motor manufacturing and testing.
“Our Orange County team has manufactured critical defense products for decades, ensuring that we meet the ever-evolving needs to protect our nation, allies and partners,” said Charley Musso, Orange County Site Director, Aerojet Rocketdyne, L3Harris. “We look forward to producing the propulsion to power Javelin, which has proven highly effective in defending against armored threats worldwide.”
The company’s Orange County, Virginia, site will begin construction as soon as the federally required environmental review is complete, which is expected to occur in the coming months.
New production areas at both sites have been designed from the ground up for high-speed and efficient manufacture of solid rocket motors. Cast and assembly buildings will incorporate automation and robotics to maximize the efficiency and flow through the manufacturing process with a minimum of unnecessary movement.
The company is also moving production of inert components for GMLRS and Javelin to a massive facility in Huntsville, Alabama. Huntsville is the company’s center of excellence for inert manufacturing, and employees there will expand ongoing work to include activities like case-winding and nozzle production for these programs.
The cooperative agreement was funded by the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act. The U.S. has provided Javelins, Stingers, and GMLRS to the Ukrainian government as it defends itself against Russian aggression.
