The National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) is a trade

association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

for the

United States government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...

and

defense industrial base A defense industrial base (DIB) is the network of organizations, facilities, and resources that provides a government with materials, products, and services for defense purposes, especially the supply of its armed military forces. It may include b ...

. It is an

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

educational organization. Its headquarters are in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

. NDIA was established in 1919 as a result of the inability of the defense industry to scale up the war effort during World War I.

Founding

In 1917, Brigadier General

Benedict Crowell Benedict Crowell (October 21, 1869 – September 8, 1952) was a United States military officer and politician particularly influential in military organization during and following World War I. He was United States Assistant Secretary of War from ...

was called to active duty and served on the General Munitions Board. As a board member, he established a relationship with the steel industry and was almost immediately appointed Assistant

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

and Director of Munitions. As Director of Munitions, Crowell was a significant catalyst in improving the country's capability to produce arms and ammunition. However, he recognized the nation's need for an association that fostered cooperation between civilian industry and government in support of industrial preparedness. He founded the Army Ordnance Association (AOA) in 1919 and served as president for its first 25 years. Over the ensuing decades, AOA became the American Defense Preparedness Association (ADPA), which then merged with the 1944 National Security Industrial Association (NSIA) in 1997, creating NDIA.

Advocacy

Opposition to military right-to-repair legislation

In July 2024, NDIA signed a letter to members of both the

House Committee on Armed Services The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee or HASC, is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for f ...

and the Senate Committee on Armed Services opposing Section 828 of S. 4628, the

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (NDAA 2025) is a United States federal law which specifies the budget, expenditures, and policies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for fiscal year 2025. Background The National ...

, entitled "Requirement for Contractors to Provide Reasonable Access to Repair Materials". The proposed Section 828 raised concerns for NDIA that include "no carve-outs or limitations to protect sensitive trade secret information" and impacts on "the economics of a dealer distribution model by effectively eliminating dealer margins ... mpacting... small and medium-sized businesses", amongst other issues.

Publications

NDIA currently publishes ''National Defense'', ''Weekly Policy Digest'', ''Weekly Defense Insider'', and ''Monthly Defense Watch''.

''National Defense'' magazine

''National Defense'' has been published under a series of different titles since 1940: * 2005–Present - ''National Defense'' * 1947–1954 - ''The Common Defense'' * 1947–1970 - ''Ordnance'' * 1945–1947 - ''Logistics'' * 1920–1945 - ''Army Ordnance'' Additional variations during the above periods: * 1946 - ''Industrial Preparedness Bulletin'' * 1943–1945 - ''Army Ordnance Report'' * 1940–1946 - ''Army Ordnance Bulletin''

Chapters

NDIA has 29 chapters located throughout the United States.

Divisions

NDIA consists of subject-specific divisions that aim to promote defense and

national security National security, or national defence (national defense in American English), is the security and Defence (military), defence of a sovereign state, including its Citizenship, citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of ...

through access, influence, and education.

Committees and working groups

NDIA has 5 industrial committees and working groups that bring government and industry personnel together on important topics.

Affiliate associations

NDIA affiliates include the Association for Enterprise Information (AFEI), the Emerging Technologies Institute (ETI), the National Training & Simulation Association (NTSA), the Precision Strike Association (PSA), and Women in Defense (WID).

References

External links

* {{Authority control Arms industry United States military associations Military simulation