The Business of Defense
Supplying products and services for the U.S. military and Department of Defense has always been a substantial task involving stringent regulations and quality requirements. Even more attention has been brought to this manufacturing niche since the advent of overseas military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan nearly a decade ago, and today, American companies are constantly supplying products used in fighting terrorism abroad while also developing innovative solutions for defense applications of the future. Numerous Upstate-based companies are making their mark on the war and defense/security efforts both home and overseas, with some of their products highly visible on the front lines of battle and others diligently working behind the scenes to ensure the safety and reliability of military-enforced operations. These local companies have already contributed to and will continue to impact U.S. defense measures in a profound way, and it starts right here in our own backyard.
Greenville-based ADEX Machining Technologies offers an array of production to prototype services for the aerospace, defense and energy industries as denoted by the company name: Aerospace-Defense-Energy-EXcellence. “Our business model is a 50/50 split between aerospace/defense and power generation,” says Jason Premo, CEO and co-owner. “Our dedication to these robust industry segments as well as our production of high-end, quality cutting-edge products secured our success during the recession, quadrupling our sales and growing from 20 to more than 50 employees.”
Originally acquired as a small tool and die shop in Greer, the company was modernized and rebranded in 2007 and relocated to Greenville by Premo and partner Sean Witty. According to Premo, ADEX delivers many value-added solutions including prototypes, contract production, 5 axis milling, EDM, certified welding, repair, assembly and more with a niche of machining exotic materials, such as Titanium, while holding tight tolerances as directed. Customers benefit from a one-stop-shop where they can obtain rapid prototyping and new product development to higher volume and just-in-time contract machining.
Some of the products and prototypes produced by ADEX have been used by all military branches in various defense applications, including armor-piercing ballistics, rocketry propulsion, warhead and missile bodies, torpedoes, RPG rocket launchers, underwater warfare, and engine components for both military and commercial helicopters and airplanes.
Upstate-based Precision Lift produces external load equipment, rescue baskets and flight line maintenance platforms that are used in a multitude of military combat and humanitarian efforts. John Tollenare, owner, served in Vietnam as a helicopter pilot and as a maintenance supervisor for helicopters, an experience and dedication he has brought into Precision Lift’s business plan. “During my career, I was required to utilize external load equipment to its limits in extreme weather conditions and temperatures and in remote areas where the equipment had to perform without ease of replacement parts due to unavailability,” says Tollenare. “Throughout my career, I was making constant improvements to equipment that we would ultimately design, manufacture and sell to the U.S. military. I’ve been able to refine the product lines by staying focused on these product types for over 45 years of my career.”
The external load equipment consists of remote release hooks, the swivel that connects the remote release hook to the long line, the electric, non-electric long lines that connect to the helicopter and a hand control that can be directly connected or connected by radio frequency to the remotely released hook. These products are used to provide the helicopter a means to deliver supplies, fuel, ammunition and soldiers to areas where helicopters are prohibited from landing or to areas not conducive to landing the aircraft, such as forested, mountainous, flooded or urban terrain. These products are available in both 10,000 lb. and 25,000 lb. lifting capacities. “The Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Navy, the Army Air National Guard and NASA uses our external load equipment,” says Tollenare. “The external load equipment is deployed in both the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters and is used to recover downed helicopters. It allows military personnel to hook up downed aircraft quickly and effectively in a very short time allowing for less exposure to enemy fire during the recovery.”
Precision Lift’s Heli-Basket® is an all-aluminum, powder-coated basket that is able to fly stably without spinning underneath a helicopter or vertical lift aircraft and is utilized as a mass rescue device. The basket is attached to a long line under the helicopter and is the only rescue device that can utilize the full lifting capacity of the helicopter and provides immediate access, point to point capability. These systems allow for improved logistical capabilities for military and humanitarian operations. “The Heli-Basket® is recognized by Homeland Defense via the Coast Guard as the only rescue device with capabilities to be stored and deployed for mass rescue as well as rescue up to 50 persons at once, addressing the entire demographic of babies to elderly, ambulatory to non-ambulatory,” says Tollenare. “The Army Air National Guard uses the Heli-Basket® and Erickson Air Crane has the Heli-Basket® as a part of the equipment sold with the Air Crane package.”
Precision Lift’s Flight Line Maintenance Platforms are utilized by maintenance personnel to allow safe maintenance procedures when over 48 inches off the ground as mandated by OSHA standards. Though designed to be mobile, these platforms provide a stable surface with railing that prevents potential accidents. “Our maintenance platforms are easily moved from hangar to the flight line and can be transported in a military cargo aircraft to support mobilization of the helicopter group,” says Tollenare. “The Army uses our platforms stateside and in Afghanistan, and the Canadian Army utilizes them in Afghanistan and for maintenance needs where their helicopters are stationed.”
Headquartered in Simpsonville, KEMET supplies various types of high reliability capacitors used in a variety of electrical and electronic systems and generally aid in filtering or smoothing the current and voltage in electrical circuits to maintain the integrity and performance of the system and, in some cases, store energy and deliver it at a precise time within a specific timing window. KEMET military-grade capacitors are typically used in power supply applications in fighter jets, radar systems for land, sea and air, communication systems (handheld and larger), and munitions such as missiles, guidance, control, simulation and training systems. KEMET supplies components to all of the major military OEMs and subcontractors.
“KEMET capacitors are deployed on land, sea and air systems whether it be peace time or war time,” says Dr. Dan Persico, Vice President of Strategic Marketing and Business Development. “One key to our products is reliability. As you can imagine, it is imperative the systems deployed using our products work every time, as lives could very well be at stake. Another key is product robustness. By that, I mean the ability to withstand the extreme environments such as high vibration, humidity, inclement weather and extreme heat and cold. Think of the environment our soldiers in the Middle East endure every day and the extremes they are put under on a constant basis. The electronic systems they employ and deploy depend on our capacitors.”
Integrated Biometrics, a start-up manufacturer and developer of patented fingerprint biometric technologies including its LES Film, its application with thin film transistors, and its award-winning matching algorithms used with the products, was founded as an alternative solution to commonly-used optical and silicon technologies. The company’s foundation was built in the commercial markets aimed at biometric physical and logical access control but has recently made inroads into the military and security sector.
“For over 10 years, Integrated Biometrics has been working with security partners to provide access control solutions in high security and harsh environments,” says Santilli. “Over the past year, Integrated Biometrics has adapted its technology to move into the mandated markets including government, civil applications and military/law enforcement for both national and international markets. Much of the recent emphasis is aimed at applications for the mobile biometric identification device market, where the patented technology delivers a 50-75% reduction in size and weight while using less energy.” Santilli adds that IB engineers have integrated the LES film with a thin film transistor, creating a new product that will become the smallest and lightest forensic quality roll scanner available on the current market. These new products will be introduced later this year and are expected to find wide application in mobile law enforcement, military and homeland security markets.
There are also many other companies, both small and large, in the Upstate scene making notable strides in the military/defense sector. According to the Department of Defense, in June, Michelin North America Inc. was awarded a $28 million contract for aircraft tires to be used in by the Army and Air Force with performance completion scheduled for September 13, 2013. Also, in July, two other contracts, ending in September 2013, were announced for ground tires to be used by the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps for $29,643,000 and $9,887,000, respectively.
Greenville newcomer Dyhold LLC is the license holder of the Dynamic Global Rapid Deployment Shelter System (RDSS), an advanced concept in rigid-wall shelter technology designed to military, FEMA and ASTM standards. The structure is a compact, easily-transportable system that can be fully deployed by one person in only two minutes or less. The design can be configured to specifically serve applications including mobile command centers, field operation centers, barracks, sterile medical triage, relief shelters and decontamination units to name a few. Alternate construction designs can be requested to provide ballistic protection, even against biological and chemical agents.
Though these Upstate companies produce a host of products employed in a variety of military and defense applications across the board, the one thing they all have in common is ensuring the highest standards of quality and reliability in their processes in order to gain and maintain military supplier status.
Persico says, “Our military product lines must meet an upgraded set of specifications and standards compared to products made for commercial applications. From the overall design of the products where manufacturing tolerances and specifications are tighter to testing of the finished product to our manufacturing facilities, everything must be inspected and certified by the government.”
Tollenare adds, “Precision Lift has acquired all certifications as directed by the government, but we also require that our products are designed to a higher requirement than that of the military, FAA and OSHA mandates. This philosophy means that our products perform better than expected.”
Economic Impact and the Outlook in the Military/Defense Sector
For these Upstate companies, the economic impact on our area directly attributed to their military/defense production has been significant, and many, though skeptical about what, if any, fallout will come from the White House’s recent announcement of a military drawback in Afghanistan operations, still feel that their future in the industry is continuing to show promise.
Integrated Biometrics’ executives see a bright future for their latest product offerings going forward, despite the scale-back of military presence overseas. “Our products are tied closely to the U.S. national security strategy, and we expect military and Homeland Security to continue to fund these essential aspects of this strategy.”
KEMET states that nearly 10% of its business is military based, and they intend to increase their market share and continue to better their overall manufacturing and business process capability perspective. “There are specific military-based products we produce only in Greenville, and we have plans to also produce some soon-to-be introduced products in Greenville,” says Persico. “In general, as our military business grows and as we increase the military product offering, the natural outcome would be increased revenues and the potential for additional employment.”
“You can be certain our scientists and engineers in the Simpsonville Innovation Center are focused on developing new products for military applications. In addition, the acquisitions we have made over the past few years delivered additional capabilities that expanded our bandwidth for product innovation and development,” says Persico. “As far as the recently announced military scale-back is concerned, the long-term impact remains up in the air. One area of military and defense development continues to be smart weapons, and this means more electronics, which means more capacitors. That said, there are opportunities for growth and penetration within the business spectrum we are engaged in today.”
Premo says that ADEX wants to create jobs going forward – jobs that are both highly-skilled and highly-compensated in contrast to commodity industries where wages are lower and threatened by overseas labor. “We are currently working with a variety of customers in large contract opportunities going forward,” says Premo. “Also, we anticipate expanding our operations to multiple factories while growing our personnel population to more than 100 employees and increasing our capital investment in the most innovative equipment.” Premo says the jobs added will encompass a variety of skill levels and, with many expected in the aerospace sector, will be high-paying positions with wages in excess of $25 per hour and employee benefits including a 401(k), health and dental coverage and company profit-sharing.
In order to fulfill these positions, ADEX places much emphasis on workforce development, including urging employee involvement in corporate decision-making, leveraging best practices and lean concepts and emphasizing continued training and education for all levels of personnel. The company even has put in place an apprenticeship program in conjunction with Greenville Tech to obtain needed technical skills required to fully operate in the job position. As for looking ahead, Premo says ADEX is well-prepared to handle and successfully triumph over any industry ups and downs.
“The decision for military pull-out does not have an immediately visible direct impact on ADEX but could impact our defense customers in such a way that they may curtail spending on protos and other live programs may be slowed. It’s difficult to determine how it will go at this point, but there are natural cycles within every industry,” says Premo. “Not only is our business split between defense/military and power generation, but we are also highly diversified without our military segment, and we are continuing to carve out ADEX’s niche, focusing on innovative products and prototypes fresh off the drawing board. We understand that technology is moving at the speed of light, and it’s imperative that we continuously upgrade our capabilities and push the limits on quality and training to ensure our future success.”