The United States Army has awarded a four-year contract to Global Military Products to assume facility management and new product development responsibilities at the Quad Cities Cartridge Case Facility (QCCCF) at Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois, according to an April 1 announcement.

The government-owned site, which has operated for more than a century as part of the Army’s industrial base, will remain under federal ownership while shifting day-to-day management to the new contractor.

The 180,000-square-foot QCCCF is equipped with deep-drawn forging technology used to manufacture brass and steel cartridge cases ranging from 40mm to 155mm calibers. Under the new arrangement, Global Military Products said it plans not only to continue current production but also to expand output for additional cartridge cases tied to its existing contracts covering both U.S. and non-NATO ammunition requirements.

“The Army’s Rock Island Arsenal has been in operation for more than a century to keep our country lethal and ready, with the Quad Cities Cartridge Case Facility focused on production of brass and steel cartridges,” said Jeff Brunozzi, president of Global Ordnance Holdings, LLC. “Under this agreement, we will leverage the facility’s capacity and employees’ capabilities to better serve the U.S. and its allies by expanding current cartridge case production and establishing a Mortar Barrel Production Center of Excellence.”

According to the company, the contract will also support the creation of a domestic Mortar Barrel Production Center of Excellence inside the QCCCF in partnership with Ellwood National Forge. The initiative is designed to establish a second U.S.-based production source for 81mm and 120mm mortar barrels, a capability the company said is intended to strengthen readiness and reduce reliance on limited supply chains.

QCCCF’s existing tooling, workforce, and underused manufacturing assets are expected to be used to replenish cartridge case inventories that remain in demand both for U.S. forces and partner nations. The addition of mortar barrel production broadens the facility’s role beyond cartridge case manufacturing and aligns it more closely with wider Army modernization and industrial expansion efforts.

“By integrating mortar barrel production into QCCCF’s expansive and well-structured manufacturing layout, we will create a second-source domestic capability for 81mm and 120mm mortar systems,” said James Knight, director of business development at Global Military Products. “Our approach will both enhance the facility’s operational versatility and transform its unused capacity into a strategically relevant manufacturing node for critical mortar barrels.”

Cartridge case production is a core element of artillery ammunition manufacturing. Brass and steel cartridge cases house the propellant charge and primer components required for systems ranging from medium-caliber weapons to 155mm howitzers, which remain heavily used across modern battlefields. Mortar barrels, meanwhile, are critical pressure-bearing components that must meet strict metallurgical and dimensional standards due to the repeated stress of indirect fire operations.

The partnership with Ellwood National Forge adds long-established domestic forging expertise to the project. As noted by the company, ENF has spent four decades producing cannon, artillery, and mortar-related forged components ranging from 81mm to 155mm. Its vertically integrated process includes steel design, melting, remelting, and forging operations, which can help secure consistent raw material supply and quality control for military production lines.

The companies involved said their teams have prior experience supporting modernization and plant management efforts at several other Army ammunition sites, including the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, Holston Army Ammunition Plant, and Radford Army Ammunition Plant. Those facilities have been central to the broader U.S. push to restore and expand domestic ammunition production capacity.

The contract was awarded under a four-year Other Transaction Authority agreement on a firm-fixed-price basis. No contract value was disclosed.