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Northrop Grumman Corporation has celebrated a key construction milestone with employees at its new Propulsion Innovation Centre in Elkton, Maryland.
The facility is set out over 5,300 square metres and is set to accommodate 250 engineers dedicated to developing advanced propulsion technologies in support of US and allied defence programs.
A global leader in solid rocket motor (SRM) production and scale, Northrop Grumman said the new facility will bolster its ability to deliver propulsion solutions immediately while continuing to invest in future capability.
“We’re delivering advanced propulsion and SRMs at scale, and Northrop Grumman has the capacity to do so today,” said Gordon LoPresti, senior director of propulsion systems and controls at Northrop Grumman.
“With engineering, development, and production ramped up at the expanded campus, we’ll be able to scale operations to produce even more survivable, solid and air-breathing hypersonic propulsion solutions – efficiently and affordably – at the pace the US military requires.”
The centre forms part of the company’s broader $100 million (approximately AU$150 million) investment at the Elkton site, enhancing capacity to meet the growing demand for hypersonic air-breathing and solid rocket propulsion systems from the US Department of Defense.
Located on Northrop Grumman’s 550-acre Propulsion Systems & Controls campus, the new building is part of a suite of construction, modernisation and smart infrastructure initiatives that will collectively increase onsite SRM design and manufacturing output by 25 per cent and support staffing growth of more than 30 per cent.
Northrop Grumman delivers end-to-end SRM and advanced propulsion solutions, from design and development to full-scale production. The company’s total output of solid rocket propellant across six major sites currently stands at around 13.6 million kilograms per year, with projections indicating this will climb to over 22.6 million kilograms annually by 2028. SRM production is also forecast to nearly double from 13,000 units in 2024 to more than 25,000 by 2029.
Construction partner Whiting-Turner is leading the development of the new centre and other infrastructure upgrades at the Elkton campus. “Whiting-Turner, along with our trade partners and suppliers, is proud to support Northrop Grumman’s expansion through projects like the Propulsion Innovation Centre,” said Joshua George, vice president of Whiting-Turner Construction. “We look forward to continuing this partnership through to completion and beyond.”
Over the past seven years, Northrop Grumman has invested more than US$1 billion in advanced manufacturing infrastructure across the United States.
These investments have included tripling SRM production at the company’s West Virginia facility and plans to double output at its large solid rocket motor sites in Utah over the next five years.
Northrop Grumman’s propulsion legacy stretches back to 1948. The Elkton site, which benefits from exclusive access to a high-end aerothermal research and testing facility, serves as headquarters for the company’s Propulsion Systems & Controls business.
It is the central hub for designing and producing solid and liquid propulsion systems for some of the most complex defence, hypersonic and space programs in operation today.
