The US Army has established a $4.17-billion, five-year framework contract with 11 companies to modernise seven government-owned ammunition production facilities, with work scheduled to continue through November 2031. The multiple-award agreement covers facility construction, production-line improvements, automation, technology integration and infrastructure maintenance. The seven sites are Holston in Tennessee, Radford in Virginia, Lake City in Missouri, Iowa, Scranton in Pennsylvania, Quad City in Illinois and Milan in Tennessee. Their activities span explosives and propellant production, small-calibre ammunition manufacturing, medium- and large-calibre ammunition assembly, artillery component production and large-calibre cartridge-case manufacturing. The selected contractors are Clark Construction Group, Burns & McDonnell, Hensel Phelps, Alberici Constructors, MC Dean, J Kokolakis Contracting, Bering-Weston JV, Applied Research Associates, Parsons Government Services, BAE Systems Ordnance Systems and MSM North America. Individual task orders will define the work locations and funding, while the Army Contracting Command in Rock Island, Illinois, has not disclosed initial funding or the projects that will receive priority. MSM North America, the US subsidiary of Czechoslovak Group, is already involved in a separate contract worth up to $635 million to build the Future Artillery Complex in Iowa. The additional framework supports the Army’s broader effort to expand 155mm ammunition output. A Pentagon Inspector General report recorded monthly production of 36,000 rounds in March 2026, significantly below the earlier target of 100,000 rounds by October 2025. The report identified projectile production as the primary constraint, citing problems at a contractor-operated facility in Mesquite, Texas, where metal components failed to meet Army specifications. The service plans to raise monthly capacity to 140,000 rounds by December 2027 by upgrading the existing Iowa plant and building two additional facilities in Kansas and Arkansas. MSM North America’s separate Iowa Future Artillery Complex is expected to enter operation in 2029 and add capacity for up to 36,000 155mm rounds per month.
