Defense contractor to build manufacturing facility in central Ohio

COLUMBUS (AP) — U.S. defense contractor Anduril Industries is preparing to build a massive advanced manufacturing facility in central Ohio, adding a planned 4,000 jobs to the area's burgeoning high-tech sector, state officials announced Thursday. The Cosa Mesa, California-based defense technology company plans to begin construction of what it's calling "Arsenal 1" as soon as state and local approvals are secured. The 5 million-square-foot facility will be located on a 500-acre site near Rickenbacker International Airport in rural Pickaway County, about 16 miles southeast of Columbus. Production of military drones and autonomous air vehicles would begin in July 2026 under the plan, said Christian Brose, Anduril's chief strategy officer. Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said it is the largest single job creation and payroll project that Ohio has announced. The governor said winning Anduril's manufacturing plant marks a continuation of Ohio's history of advanced aviation, which began with the Ohio-born Wright brothers and continues to grow surrounding the Dayton-area Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. "We are an aerospace state," DeWine said. He called Ohio "the brains of the Air Force." DeWine, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted and JobsOhio CEO J.P. Nauseef said that, through targeted economic development efforts, the state boasts a strong and diverse aerospace workforce. They said it also has a network of job training centers, colleges and universities prepared to educate new advanced manufacturing workers. Those helped attract the nationally-competitive deal, they said. "Ohio has literally built a strategy around this kind of project, and so we are perfect for them," Husted said. The aerospace sector in Ohio includes the global headquarters of GE Aerospace and a new Joby Aviation manufacturing facility near Dayton that's preparing to manufacture electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL, aircraft beginning this year. Anduril casts the Ohio facility as integral to its goal to "Rebuild the Arsenal" of U.S. military weapons and platforms by "hyperscaling" manufacturing with advanced software and production technologies. The latest development adds to what is becoming known as a "silicon corridor" based in Ohio. It includes Intel, which is building a $20 billion chip factory just east of the Columbus, and Honda and LG Energy Solution of South Korea, which are building a $3.5 billion battery plant in nearby Fayette County that the automaker envisions as its North American electric vehicle hub. Ohio State University also announced plans in 2023 to build a $110 million software innovation center to dovetail with those efforts. At separate upcoming state meetings, the Anduril project will pursue a job creation tax credit from the Ohio Department of Development and a $70 million infusion from the All Ohio Future Fund, which the DeWine administration and lawmakers established to help local governments prepare sites for economic development projects. JobsOhio also plans to provide the project a sizeable grant, whose exact amount will be announced once agreements are signed, as well as talent acquisition services.