The Armaments Bureau ( zh, t=國防部軍備局, p=Guófángbù Jūnbèijú) is an affiliated authority of the

Ministry of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divide ...

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

(informally known as Taiwan).

History

With the National Defense Law and revised Organization Law of the Ministry of National Defense went into effect on 1 March 2002, the Armaments Bureau was formulated according to the two laws. In 2014 the

National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST; ) is a Taiwanese state owned corporation, formerly part of the Ministry of National Defense's Armaments Bureau, which is active in the development, manufacturing, support, and ...

was made an administrative corporation by the government, ending its period of secrecy under the Armaments Bureau and opening up the opportunity to partner with foreign corporations and export equipment internationally. In 2015 Lieutenant General Ho An-ch replaced the retiring Lieutenant General Chin Shou-feng as director of the Armaments Bureau. In 2020 the Armaments Bureau, along with a number of public and private partners, began developing a

powered exoskeleton An exoskeleton is a wearable device that augments, enables, assists, or enhances motion, posture, or physical activity through mechanical interaction with and force applied to the user’s body. Other common names for a wearable exoskeleton in ...

for military and disaster relief tasks. The program was started because foreign military exoskeleton programs had not yet reached the export stage and as such Taiwan's requests to procure military exoskeletons had been rebuffed. The program was allocated NT$250 million (US$8.3 million) for the 2020 fiscal year with serial production scheduled to begin in 2023. In 2023 the Armaments Bureau and in particular the 205th Arsenal were the subject of reform efforts by the

Control Yuan The Control Yuan is the supervisory and auditory branch of the government of the Republic of China, both during its time in mainland China and Taiwan. Designed as a hybrid of auditor and ombudsman by Taiwanese law, the Control Yuan holds th ...

. Multiple officers were impeached for problems related to corruption and inefficiency. The impeached officers had received favors and gifts from private contractors in return for preferential treatment procurement treatment. The Control Yuan ordered the implementation of improvements to internal oversight and evaluation procedures.

Organizational structure

* Program Evaluation Division * Technology and Industry Division * Acquisition Management Division * Procurement Management Division * Construction and Real Estate Division * Management Information Office * General Administration Office * Comptroller Office

Arsenals

Headquarters

The bureau headquarters is accessible within walking distance South West from

Dazhi Station The Taipei Metro Dazhi station is located in the Zhongshan District in Taipei, Taiwan. It is a station of Brown Line. Station overview This two-level, underground station features an island platform, three exits, and a platform elevator loca ...

of the

Taipei Metro Taipei Metro (also known as Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and branded as Metro Taipei) is a rapid transit system operated by the Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation serving the capital Taipei and New Taipei City in Taiwan. It was the first rapi ...

209th Arsenal

Responsible for development of CM-32 armoured vehicle. Located in the Nantou County town of

Jiji Jiji may refer to: *Jiji people, an ethnic and linguistic group in western Tanzania. * Jiji, Nantou, a township in Taiwan ** Jiji railway station, a railway station serving Jiji ** Jiji Line, a railway line serving Jiji *Jiji Press, a Japanese new ...

205th Arsenal

Developers and producers of the

T75 pistol The T75 pistol (Chinese: T75手槍) is produced by the 205th Arsenal, Ministry of National Defense (Republic of China), Ministry of National Defense in Taiwan. Design The T75 is based on the Italian-made Beretta M92. The T75K3 features pol ...

, T93 sniper rifle, T91 assault rifle and XT-97 Assault Rifle. Also involved in

quadcopter A quadcopter, also called quadrocopter, or quadrotor is a type of helicopter or multicopter that has four rotors. Although quadrotor helicopters and convertiplanes have long been flown experimentally, the configuration remained a curiosity ...

development and production. Based in

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...

. The 205th Arsenal sells firearms components and ammunition on the American commercial market.

T112 assault rifle

The

T112 assault rifle The T112 assault rifle is a Taiwanese AR-15–style rifle produced by the 205th Armory. It is intended to replace the T91 assault rifle. Design The upper receiver has a full length optics rail with permanent folding iron sights, the handguar ...

is intended to replace the T91 in regular Taiwanese service.

T108 sniper rifle

Medium bolt action sniper rifle chambered in 7.62 NATO. First ordered in 2018. Intended to replace the T93 in regular service.

T112 sniper rifle

Heavy bolt action sniper rifle chambered in .50 BMG. 100 ordered by Taiwanese special forces.

203rd Arsenal

Has developed advanced camouflage materials for special forces use.

202nd Arsenal

The 202nd Arsenal both designs and produces large and small artillery. They also manufacture munitions for artillery systems.

References

{{Defence Materiel Procurement Agencies 2002 establishments in Taiwan Military installations established in 2002 Military installations of the Republic of China