Ramona Adams
Orbital ATK will expand its production facility in Mesa, Ariz., in an effort to meet the demand for the company’s Bushmaster family of medium-caliber cannons.
The expansion project will add 36,000 square feet of space to Orbital ATK’s Mesa operations and will combine warehouse and manufacturing operations into one location, the aerospace and defense contractor said Thursday.
Orbital ATK expects the new site to become fully operational before the end of 2018 and to nearly double the company’s production of Bushmaster cannons for the U.S. and allied militaries.
Mesa Mayor John Giles said the expanded facility will create new jobs in engineering, manufacturing and management.
Orbital ATK currently employs approximately 200 full-time personnel in Mesa and the company plans to recruit 50 to 60 new engineering, program management and manufacturing technicians as a result of the expansion effort.
The new facility will house production operations and a separate headquarters for engineering, program management, business development and operations support activities.
In March, Orbital ATK unveiled a plan to establish a 47-acre campus in Chandler, Ariz., to grow the company’s launch vehicle operations.
