History of the Ammunition Industrial Base - JMC - U.S. Army

(8 active and 16 inactive plants) was producing at a rate of 7% percent of the maximum rate
required to match the envisioned consumption rate of basic Army forces. At the onset of
Vietnam, the Army‟s in-house munitions production base consisted of 26 GOCO production
facilities managed by the U.S. Army Munitions Command (MUCOM), 24 of which produced
conventional munitions. According to RJ Hammond the industrial base operated near capacity
throughout the Vietnam Conflict. 116 MUCOM annual histories from this time also illustrated
plant capacity and surge. The following chart shows capacity ready for immediate activation for
surge requirements, and the percent of standby plants that would require lead time before
production could be reinstated. 117
Ammunition Inudstrial Base Capacity
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Standby Plants
Surge Capacity
Available/Active
Plants
Capacity Utilized
Load, Assemble and Pack (LAP) and metal parts plants were 100% active and utilized at
around 96% capacity. Metal parts production required large investment in production equipment
and substantial production lead time. The explosives capacity was activated at 85% with 89% of
that capacity used in production. The remaining 15% was Alabama Army Ammunition Plant,
that had partial TNT lines available that could be reconstructed in the event of an emergency.
Alabama AAP remained in standby status throughout the conflict although it had been scheduled
for excess. 118 The propellants plants used 70% of the 92% available, active capacity. Volunteer
and Joliet AAPs were operating a maximum capacity of 1 million lbs or more per day and
Radford reached its capacity of 330K lbs per day in 1969. The small arms ammunition plant
capacity consisted of two plants which operated at 100% capacity. The chart indicates there was
little flexibility for surge requirements in the active plants.
Production schedules for small arms ammunition reflected the buildup of Korea during
the Vietnam period. Lake City and Twin Cities made up the entire capability for small arms
ammunition production. The plants had the added responsibility of making additional items such
116 Hammond, 9.
117 U.S. Army Munitions Command, Annual Historical Summaries 1964-1969. Hammond, Table 10.
118 Hammond, 9.
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