WASHINGTON — Defense technology firm Anduril Industries on Sunday announced it has acquired solid rocket manufacturer Adranos, giving it a stronger position within the hypersonic and missile market.
Anduril’s purchase of Adranos will allow it to begin supplying solid rocket motors to corporations that make hypersonic weapons, missiles and other propulsion systems, the company said in a blog post. The terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
The acquisition marks a big expansion of Anduril’s scope. The corporate, founded in 2017, has primarily focused on technologies like artificial intelligence, counter-drone systems and autonomous air systems.
Adranos is best known for making a solid rocket fuel dubbed ALITEC, product of an aluminum-lithium alloy. The corporate, founded at Purdue University in 2015, says this fuel can produce as much as 40% more range in solid rocket motors than other fuels at lower cost.
Anduril also highlighted Adranos’s work on advanced manufacturing processes for developing solid rocket motors, which it claims is quicker and more efficient than those utilized by other solid rocket motor manufacturers.
“There may be a transparent need for greater competition and expanded supply in solid rocket motors for the USA and our allies,” Anduril chief executive Brian Schimpf said within the post. “With this acquisition, Anduril will grow the defense industrial base, speed development and production of critical components with a complicated manufacturing approach, and enable next-generation performance of solid rocket motors with ALITEC, which is crucial for national security and [the] overall health of the defense industry.”
Anduril plans to develop the Adranos Solid Rocket Complex production facility in Mississippi into what it called a contemporary manufacturing facility. The improvements to Adranos’ facility will allow it to supply 1000’s of solid rocket motors, each standard and people who use ALITEC fuel, per yr at faster rates.
“Our focus has been on innovating solid rocket motor development and manufacturing, solving the issues of rocket range and production volumes,” Adranos chief executive Chris Stoker said. “With Anduril, we’ll give you the option to rapidly mature our technology and scale our team and production capabilities to extend our output to 1000’s of traditional and ALITEC solid rocket motors per yr.”
Mississippi Sens. Cyndi Hyde-Smith and Roger Wicker, each Republicans, were quoted within the blog post as emphasizing the importance of solid rocket motors to U.S. national security, and said Anduril’s acquisition of Adranos will expand industry’s ability to produce those parts.
“These motors are the lifeblood of munitions, hypersonic weapons and small space launch systems,” Wicker said. “Anduril’s acquisition of Adranos establishes a brand new merchant supplier of those components at a critical time.”
Aerojet Rocketdyne, Northrop Grumman and Nammo are among the other firms competing to make solid rocket motors.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.