US strengthens supply chains for hypersonic and strategic systems

The US Department of Defenses (DoD) announced it has made three awards to strengthen supply chains for hypersonic and strategic systems. The companies receiving the awards are General Electric (GE), Carbon-Carbon Advanced Technologies (C-CAT), and Northrop Grumman, according to US department of defense.

GE was awarded a $7.96 million contract to engage in a 39-month effort to increase capacity for the production of high- and ultra-high temperature composites (U/HTC), as well as the modernization of capital equipment to support the scale-up of aeroshell production. The work is taking place at the GE Advanced Materials Center in Newark, Delaware.

C-CAT was awarded a $7.57 million contract to undertake a 38-month effort to build new production capabilities, expand existing manufacturing spaces, and acquire capital equipment for the manufacture of large complex assemblies made of carbon-carbon (C-C), a class of advanced composite material that is critical for various defense and aerospace applications. This effort will support increased production rates for C-C nose tips and aeroshell assemblies for ongoing DoD-sponsored pilot production programs and is taking place at their Arlington, Texas facility.

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation will expand the domestic capability for producing U/HTC to support multiple components of hypersonic and strategic systems through the procurement of automated preform manufacturing equipment and high temperature furnaces. Through the $9.43 million dollar contract, the work will be conducted at Northrop Grumman's Elkton, Maryland facility and will expand the company's existing production processes to meet DoD performance specifications.

"The Department of Defense continues to deliver on the President's strategic objectives of supporting industrial sectors critical to our nation's national security needs and strategic interests," said Dr. Laura Taylor-Kale, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy. The Biden Administration has identified hypersonics technology as a critical need for ensuring American national security. The Office of Industrial Base Policy – through the MCEIP team, is pleased to act on behalf of the nation to accelerate the advancement of hypersonics technology in the United States."

President Biden's Executive Order 14017 recognized the need to support and advance the development of the domestic hypersonics industrial base. MCEIP's Office of Defense Production Act Investments is responsible for making the awards by utilizing financial tools, like purchases and purchase commitments to support the expansion of the hypersonics industrial base.

Industrial Base Policy is the principal advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment (USD(A&S)) for developing Department of Defense policies for the maintenance of the United States' defense industrial base (DIB), executing small business programs and policy, and conduction geo-economic analysis and assessments. The office also provides the OUSD(A&S) with recommendations on budget matters related to the DIB, anticipates and closes gaps in manufacturing capabilities for defense systems, and assesses impacts related to mergers, acquisition, and divestitures.