Conventional Munitions Industrial Base
Conventional Munitions Industrial Base

Author: Scott S. Haraburda

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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"Readiness is the Army's number one priority. It requires the strategic capability to procure and manufacture munitions when and where they are needed. Understanding how and why to do this requires a full understanding of the historical development of the American conventional munitions industrial base (CMIB), including a study of some of the devastating lessons learned along the way ... The American CMIB faces several challenges that could impact munitions readiness to Soldiers in the future. One of these challenges includes the quantities and age of the munitions in storage. Nearly a third of the almost 3,000 types of munitions are short of the required quantities and nearly one quarter of the stored munitions are more than 25 years old. The United States should conduct a comprehensive strategic review of its munitions and demilitarize those items it no longer needs. Another challenge is that much of the equipment in the CMIB government facilities is old, obsolete and expensive to operate, indicating capability concerns for sustaining the quality and quantity of munitions required for a prolonged national emergency. As such, the United States should decide which part of the CMIB should be saved and which part should be eliminated. The last challenge is its workforce; the skills involved in munitions-related production generally cannot be adapted to commercial application, nor can existing commercial production experience be converted to munitions productions. It is critical that munitions-manufacturing skills be preserved. The commanders of the government munitions plants should be given the authority to hire government workers to meet its workload and to mitigate anticipated losses through over-hiring. Although not perfect, the CMIB supported the U.S. military successes from initial sovereignty more than two centuries ago to its undisputed global superpower position today. While it was good enough for the past, by and large, the question now is whether it will be good enough for future needs. Although it is not as necessary during long periods of reduced demand, when demand does increase, CMIB needs to be responsive, dependable and reliable. There is a crucial question facing the nation, the same question that it has had to answer repeatedly for more than two centuries: what can be done to ensure that the CMIB is given sufficient resources to sustain Army readiness?"--Publisher's web site

Alternatives for the Demilitarization of Conventional Munitions
Alternatives for the Demilitarization of Conventional Munitions

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2019-01-11

Total Pages: 133

ISBN-13: 0309477352

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The U.S. military has a stockpile of approximately 400,000 tons of excess, obsolete, or unserviceable munitions. About 60,000 tons are added to the stockpile each year. Munitions include projectiles, bombs, rockets, landmines, and missiles. Open burning/open detonation (OB/OD) of these munitions has been a common disposal practice for decades, although it has decreased significantly since 2011. OB/OD is relatively quick, procedurally straightforward, and inexpensive. However, the downside of OB and OD is that they release contaminants from the operation directly into the environment. Over time, a number of technology alternatives to OB/OD have become available and more are in research and development. Alternative technologies generally involve some type of contained destruction of the energetic materials, including contained burning or contained detonation as well as contained methods that forego combustion or detonation. Alternatives for the Demilitarization of Conventional Munitions reviews the current conventional munitions demilitarization stockpile and analyzes existing and emerging disposal, treatment, and reuse technologies. This report identifies and evaluates any barriers to full-scale deployment of alternatives to OB/OD or non-closed loop incineration/combustion, and provides recommendations to overcome such barriers.

Optimizing the Capacity and Operation of U. S. Army Ammunition Production Facilities
Optimizing the Capacity and Operation of U. S. Army Ammunition Production Facilities

Author: Vedat Bayram

Publisher:

Published: 2002-06-01

Total Pages: 76

ISBN-13: 9781423509783

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As the executive agent for ammunition, the Army manages the arsenals and plants that produce conventional ammunition for the Department of Defense, This industrial base must be able to manufacture a wide range of ammunition and ordnance items In peacetime, the Army tests new rounds, makes training rounds, and manufactures rounds or components for war reserves, stockpile maintenance and upgrades. The Army must also manage and maintain capacity to replenish ammunition consumed by major theater wars without expanding the industrial base, The combined organic and inorganic industrial base can meet current requirements, but parts are becoming obsolete, and are expensive to operate To improve efficiency and reduce per-unit costs while maintaining strategic control of this key defense capability, the Army is seeking to reconfigure facilities, and stabilize production rates, The Army realizes that the industrial base structure has to change, This thesis provides a prototypic decision support model that captures the essence of their problem by optimizing transition actions while satisfying complicated long-term constraints on resources, management, and capacity, The model suggests yearly decisions for a planning horizon of a decade or more, and is demonstrated with 16 organic installations, structures located therein, and process centers housed in those structures,

Optimizing the Capacity and Operation of US Army Ammunition Production Facilities
Optimizing the Capacity and Operation of US Army Ammunition Production Facilities

Author: Vedat Bayram

Publisher:

Published: 2002-06-01

Total Pages: 76

ISBN-13: 9781423509516

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As the executive agent for ammunition, the Army manages the arsenals and plants that produce conventional ammunition for the Department of Defense. This industrial base must be able to manufacture a wide range of ammunition and ordnance items. In peacetime, the Army tests new rounds, makes training rounds, and manufactures rounds or components for war reserves, stockpile maintenance and upgrades. The Army must also manage and maintain capacity to replenish ammunition consumed by major theater wars without expanding the industrial base. The combined organic and inorganic industrial base can meet current requirements, but parts are becoming obsolete, and are expensive to operate To improve efficiency and reduce per-unit costs while maintaining strategic control of this key defense capability, the Army is seeking to reconfigure facilities, and stabilize production rates. The Army realizes that the industrial base structure has to change. This thesis provides a prototypic decision support model that captures the essence of their problem by optimizing transition actions while satisfying complicated long-term constraints on resources, management, and capacity. The model suggests yearly decisions for a planning horizon of a decade or more, and is demonstrated with 16 organic installations, structures located therein, and process centers housed in those structures.

The Munitions Industrial Base
The Munitions Industrial Base

Author: Moses Whitehurst

Publisher:

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 32

ISBN-13:

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Downsizing of U.S. Military forces since the end of the Cold War has led to an unparalleled reduction of the Defense Industrial Base. Some critics now claim the military lacks an adequate supply of modern preferred munitions to execute the new National Security Strategy of Engagement and Enlargement. They go on to question the U.S. military's ability to execute the National Military Strategy, which requires our forces to execute and win two near simultaneous major regional contingencies. Even so, we continue to restructure and reduce the size of the force. This strategy requires the continued capability to deter war and respond to crisis. We also need the capability to replenish war reserves and reconstitute forces after military intervention in response to a new major regional threat. The success of the Gulf War may have erroneously suggested a capability to fight a protracted war or to readily reconstitute forces. This strategy research project will examine the munitions industrial base of the past, assess present capabilities, and make recommendations to ensure that there is an adequate base for our forces well into the 21st century.

The Munitions Industrial Base: Past, Present and Future
The Munitions Industrial Base: Past, Present and Future

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 39

ISBN-13:

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Downsizing of U.S. Military forces since the end of the Cold War has led to an unparalleled reduction of the Defense Industrial Base. Some critics now claim the military lacks an adequate supply of modern preferred munitions to execute the new National Security Strategy of Engagement and Enlargement. They go on to question the U.S. military's ability to execute the National Military Strategy, which requires our forces to execute and win two near simultaneous major regional contingencies. Even so, we continue to restructure and reduce the size of the force. This strategy requires the continued capability to deter war and respond to crisis. We also need the capability to replenish war reserves and reconstitute forces after military intervention in response to a new major regional threat. The success of the Gulf War may have erroneously suggested a capability to fight a protracted war or to readily reconstitute forces. This strategy research project will examine the munitions industrial base of the past, assess present capabilities, and make recommendations to ensure that there is an adequate base for our forces well into the 21st century.