As defense expands, so does Antelope Valley
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Saturday, February 21, 2004.
By ALLISON GATLIN
Valley Press Staff Writer
 
 

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LANCASTER - The nation's expanding defense budget is good news for the Antelope Valley and its resident aerospace industry.
"Defense spending is on the rise and we certainly are booming here in the Antelope Valley and Southern California," said Duke Dufresne, Northrop Grumman Air Combat Systems vice president and Long Range Strike Program manager.

Dufresne spoke about the aerospace industry Friday at the Antelope Valley Board of Trade's annual Business Outlook Conference.

Northrop Grumman, one of the nation's aerospace and defense industry giants, employs more than 1,500 workers at its facility at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale.

The company's Antelope Valley manufacturing center is home to production of the Global Hawk unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicles, aerial drones and maintenance and modifications for the nation's B-2 stealth bomber fleet, which were manufactured there.

"The B-2 program housed right here in the Antelope Valley was the engine that drove the growth of (Northrop Grumman)," Dufresne said.

The center is home to approximately three B-2s at any given time as the bombers cycle through major maintenance and upgrades.

The Palmdale facility also is gearing up for production of the center fuselage of the F-35 joint strike fighter.

A new addition to the facility later this year will be fabrication of the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System now under development. The next phase in unmanned weaponry, the program is expected to increase employment at the Palmdale site to more than 2,500 employees over the next five to 10 years, Dufresne said.

With several diverse programs all going on at the same place, the company plans a synergistic relationship to share resources across the board to gain efficiency, he said.

The manufacturing center continues to ride the cutting edge of industrial technology, with the largest robotic paint system in the world already in place for coating the B-2 bombers. Other advanced systems are under way for production of the joint strike fighter.

"We're not just bringing manufacturing, we're bringing high-tech manufacturing," Dufresne said.

While Northrop Grumman has acquired numerous other defense industry companies over the last 10 years, its Integrated Systems sector "really is the heart and soul of the company," Dufresne said. This division includes the company's traditional aircraft manufacturing activities, as well as the high-tech systems integration work which allows numerous components to work together.
 
 
 
 
 

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