Rocket systems manufacturer to expand in Orange County

A defense contractor with a presence in Orange County is set to expand adding 80 additional jobs over three years. That’s according to an economic development announcement sent out last Thursday by Governor Glenn Youngkin. 

L3Harris Technologies will expand a factory that makes motors for solid rockets as part of a cooperative agreement between the company’s Aerojet Rocketdyne subsidiary and the Defense Department. 

“These systems propel DoD missiles and missile defense interceptors, along with space launch vehicles and national security satellites used in civil and commercial applications,” reads an April 14, 2023 press release from the Department of Defense. 

Aerojet Rocketdyne also has facilities in Camden, Arkansas and Huntsville, Alabama. The company is the number three employer in Orange County according to the Virginia Employment Commission. 

Economic development officials in the area have been promoting the area to defense contractors. Orange County is within the jurisdiction of the Central Virginia Partnership for Economic Development.

“A very important company in our aerospace and defense sector, L3Harris is exactly the type of company we want to have remain and grow in Central Virginia,” said CVPED President Helen Cauthen in a press release. “We are delighted to celebrate their successes in Orange County.” 

Orange County is outside the scope of a study of the defense sector commissioned by the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce. The Weldon Cooper Center of Public Service at the University of Virginia calculated the industry has a $1.2 billion impact on the local economy each year. (read the report)

Orange County had a 2020 U.S. Census Count of 34,442, an increase of about 8,500 people since 2020. The Weldon Cooper Center sees that increasing to 44,080 by 2040. 

Meanwhile, on April 23, 2024, Reuters reported that L3Harris will cut five percent of its workforce this year.

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