thedrifter
08-02-07, 06:26 AM
Aug. 2, 2007, 12:00AM
Sealy plant makes heavily armored vehicles for Marines
By ASHLEY HARRIS
For the Chronicle
Workers on a sweltering assembly line in Sealy have begun producing a new kind of trucks designed to protect Marines in Iraq from roadside bombs.
These massive camouflaged vehicles have windows tested to be sure they can withstand enemy fire and mounts for removable armor so units in the field can switch from light to heavy protection when needed.
"With the increasing number of mine weapons, every vehicle needs self-protection," said Phil Halsey, vice president of the production engineering tactical vehicle systems division for BAE in Sealy. "Our job is to protect those who are protecting us."
The company making those vehicles changed its name this week, when BAE Systems closed on its purchase of Armor Holdings.
It's taken over a sprawling assembly plant that employs 2,100 workers and is hiring 30 more a week to keep up, Halsey said.
The company's latest offering, its mine-resistant ambush protection vehicle, will keep it busy.
The U.S. Marine Corps has ordered more than 1,000 of these so-called MRAPs, costing $518.5 million, and BAE will be competing for contracts to build more.
Aiming for 43 a day
This new vehicle is the latest of the 27 kinds of trucks developed, tested and manufactured in Sealy.
It is now producing 36 trucks a day and plans to increase production up to 43 a day by early next year.
"The urgent needs that have come from the war in Iraq have increased the requirements for vehicle survivability," said Linda Hudson, president of the land and armaments division for BAE.
Workers are now able to install an engine in the chassis in three minutes instead of the hours it once took.
The assembly line is capable of carrying vehicles that weigh from 2.5 tons up to 11 tons.
$4.2 billion deal
This plant was a key piece of Armor Holdings, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based company, that sold for $4.2 billion in cash and stock, said Douglas Coffey, a spokesman for BAE.
The merger brings together two companies making products for the military.
The strong military ties are evident throughout the plant. Many of Armor Holdings employees are reservists or veterans. Pictures of former employees from Sealy who died in combat are displayed near the lobby.
BAE is among the handful of companies seeking orders. A Pentagon official told a congressional committee in July that the Pentagon is trying to buy more armored vehicles as fast as possible, and Congress has authorized $5.4 billion to buy them this fiscal year, according to Bloomberg News.
Expecting demand
Those who run this plant know the costly war behind this demand won't go on forever, but they say the needs they fill will remain.
"I don't think the emphasis of survivability is going to go out of style," Hudson said. "The emphasis on trying to stay ahead of the competition and the enemy will always be there. It's my expectation that the demand will continue to grow independent of what happens in Iraq."
The acquisition by BAE means this plant is now owned by a company with a larger international sales force.
"One of our expectations out of this acquisition is for our design capabilities to improve, which is not something we could do as competitors," she said.
"This is a high-performing organization, and we feel no need to change it. It would be foolish of us to do that."
ashley.harris@chron.com
Ellie
Sealy plant makes heavily armored vehicles for Marines
By ASHLEY HARRIS
For the Chronicle
Workers on a sweltering assembly line in Sealy have begun producing a new kind of trucks designed to protect Marines in Iraq from roadside bombs.
These massive camouflaged vehicles have windows tested to be sure they can withstand enemy fire and mounts for removable armor so units in the field can switch from light to heavy protection when needed.
"With the increasing number of mine weapons, every vehicle needs self-protection," said Phil Halsey, vice president of the production engineering tactical vehicle systems division for BAE in Sealy. "Our job is to protect those who are protecting us."
The company making those vehicles changed its name this week, when BAE Systems closed on its purchase of Armor Holdings.
It's taken over a sprawling assembly plant that employs 2,100 workers and is hiring 30 more a week to keep up, Halsey said.
The company's latest offering, its mine-resistant ambush protection vehicle, will keep it busy.
The U.S. Marine Corps has ordered more than 1,000 of these so-called MRAPs, costing $518.5 million, and BAE will be competing for contracts to build more.
Aiming for 43 a day
This new vehicle is the latest of the 27 kinds of trucks developed, tested and manufactured in Sealy.
It is now producing 36 trucks a day and plans to increase production up to 43 a day by early next year.
"The urgent needs that have come from the war in Iraq have increased the requirements for vehicle survivability," said Linda Hudson, president of the land and armaments division for BAE.
Workers are now able to install an engine in the chassis in three minutes instead of the hours it once took.
The assembly line is capable of carrying vehicles that weigh from 2.5 tons up to 11 tons.
$4.2 billion deal
This plant was a key piece of Armor Holdings, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based company, that sold for $4.2 billion in cash and stock, said Douglas Coffey, a spokesman for BAE.
The merger brings together two companies making products for the military.
The strong military ties are evident throughout the plant. Many of Armor Holdings employees are reservists or veterans. Pictures of former employees from Sealy who died in combat are displayed near the lobby.
BAE is among the handful of companies seeking orders. A Pentagon official told a congressional committee in July that the Pentagon is trying to buy more armored vehicles as fast as possible, and Congress has authorized $5.4 billion to buy them this fiscal year, according to Bloomberg News.
Expecting demand
Those who run this plant know the costly war behind this demand won't go on forever, but they say the needs they fill will remain.
"I don't think the emphasis of survivability is going to go out of style," Hudson said. "The emphasis on trying to stay ahead of the competition and the enemy will always be there. It's my expectation that the demand will continue to grow independent of what happens in Iraq."
The acquisition by BAE means this plant is now owned by a company with a larger international sales force.
"One of our expectations out of this acquisition is for our design capabilities to improve, which is not something we could do as competitors," she said.
"This is a high-performing organization, and we feel no need to change it. It would be foolish of us to do that."
ashley.harris@chron.com
Ellie