A munitions factory, also called an ordnance factory or a munitions manufacturing base, is a factory that produces
explosives
An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An exp ...
,
ammunition
Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
,
missiles
A missile is an airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight aided usually by a propellant, jet engine or rocket motor.
Historically, 'missile' referred to any projectile that is thrown, shot or propelled towards a target; this u ...
, and similar products. They are used by the
defence industry to produce equipment for military use, as well as for public consumption in countries which allow citizens to carry
firearms
A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions).
The first firearms originated ...
.
In the United States
In the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, munitions factories that are used to produce equipment for the military are all government owned, though some are operated by contractors. In 2020, there were 5 active plants. The government office typically responsible for munitions funding is the
Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...
's Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Resilience. In September of 2023, that office announced a plan to begin funding more factories, providing $50 million worth in shared equipment and $25 million in monetary funding.
In the United Kingdom
The majority of
British military
The British Armed Forces are the unified military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, support international peacekeeping e ...
munitions are produced by
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...
, a manufacturing company in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, though some are standard
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
equipment manufactured elsewhere. According to a 2020 article from ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', the United Kingdom was the second-largest exporter of arms in the world.
Hazards
Due to the nature of devices being produced in munitions factories, working conditions are typically dangerous. Ordnance can
explode
An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume of a given amount of matter associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Explosions may also be generated ...
, and if the factory is producing
chemical
A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combin ...
or
biological weapons
Biological agents, also known as biological weapons or bioweapons, are pathogens used as weapons. In addition to these living or replicating pathogens, toxins and biotoxins are also included among the bio-agents. More than 1,200 different kin ...
, yet more risks are added. Also, concerns have been raised over possible
contamination of drinking water
Drinking water or potable water is water that is safe for ingestion, either when drunk directly in liquid form or consumed indirectly through food preparation. It is often (but not always) supplied through taps, in which case it is also called ...
due to
runoff.
One notable incident with unexploded ordnance going off in the plant was the April 11, 2017 incident at
Lake City Army Ammunition Plant
Lake City Army Ammunition Plant (LCAAP) is a U.S. government-owned, contractor-operated facility in northeastern Independence, Missouri. It produces ammunition for military and personal rifles.
Lake City was established by Remington Arms in ...
, which killed worker Lawrence Bass. The cause is thought to be improper working conditions and untaken precautions. Since 2010, Bass and one other person have died due to exploding parts.
See also
*
Filling factories in the United Kingdom
A filling factory was a manufacturing plant that specialised in filling various Ammunition, munitions, such as bombs, Shell (projectile), shells, Cartridge (firearms), cartridges, Explosive, pyrotechnics, and Smoke screen, screening smokes. In t ...
References
{{reflist
Ammunition
Manufacturing buildings and structures