ARMY AL&T
Without an adequate supply of water, the Army ammunition plants could not operate.
valves; new motors; variable frequency drives (for pump motors); motor control center with switchgears; and new flow meters. BAE Systems completed this $17.8 million upgrade in March.
It is critical for facilities to meet ammunition production require- ments while ensuring workforce safety, especially for those involved in inherently dangerous explosives operations. Recent years have seen a significant amount of modernization fund- ing aimed at recapitalizing the Army ammunition plants. In these aging facilities, unique equipment used for explosive and energetic materials is experiencing unplanned downtime or even obsolescence because it has aged beyond the point where mainte- nance can ensure production continuity. Terefore, construction of new facilities is critical for enabling continued production of ammunition.
Tis is especially evident at Holston Army Ammunition Plant in Tennessee where a recent expansion project will upgrade and rebuild multiple explosives production processes for the increased production of RDX—the most commonly used synthetic chem- ical compound that can be used as a base charge for detonators among other uses—and HMX, which explodes at temperatures above 534 degrees. Improvements include a new nitration facil- ity where crude explosives are generated, a new melt-cast facility for the manufacture of insensitive munitions explosives formu- lations (munitions designed to withstand shock from adjacent detonating munitions) and a new kettle drying operation, which will increase drying capacity for CMX-7 a premix for PBXN-107 (a plastic-bonded explosive), bomb fill, as well as other explosives.
CONCLUSION Increased funding levels required to maintain the Army ammu- nition plants is necessary based on production requirements and the amount of recapitalization needed to modernize these facil- ities for the future. Impacts from global events, supply chain disruptions and inflation have made strategic planning and reliable budget estimating more important. Te Army ammu- nition plant modernization plan provides a strategic investment
https://asc.ar my.mil 105
strategy to ensure ammunition manufacturing readiness now and in the future.
For more information, contact Matthew T. Zimmerman,
matthew.t.zimmerman2.civ@
army.mil.
MATTHEW T. ZIMMERMAN supports the JPEO A&A Project Director for Joint Services. He is responsible for an annual procurement and research, development, test and evaluation budget for the GOCO Army ammunition plant acquisition strategies
and modernization program, demilitarization
program, manufacturing technology and prototyping activities, and integrating the DOD’s Single Manager for Conventional Ammunition responsibilities. He has a master’s in engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, a master’s in technology management from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School & Moore School and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the Pennsylvania State University. He has completed the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government program and the Defense Acquisition University Senior Service College Fellowship. He is a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and holds the DAWIA Advanced program management certification.
GABRIELA DORY, Ph.D., supports the Project Director for Joint Services. She has over 15 years of civil service with the U.S. Army supporting research, development, test and evaluation, acquisition and program management for the industrial base, including expertise in environmental permitting and production base management support. She has a Ph.D. in environmental science from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, an M.S. in environmental and waste management from Stony Brook University and a B.S. in biology from Union College.
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