Constellium breaks ground on $65M expansion
The Department of Defense announced July 22 a $23 million award via the Defense Production Act Investment (DPAI) program to Constellium Muscle Shoals LLC in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
The award aims to increase capacity in annual aluminum casting production, secure capability to supply U.S. mills, and provide surge capacity to support U.S. security commitments around the globe.
The funding will help Constellium complete a $65 million expansion to the facility
This effort supports the 2024 National Defense Industrial Strategy to continue and expand support for domestic production to increase supply chain resilience.
“Aluminum castings are dispersed across many critical applications in defense – including flight critical structural components, rocket and space systems, and light-weight armor for ground vehicles,” said Dr. Laura Taylor-Kale, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy (ASD(IBP)). “This award will help address capability and capacity challenges that the U.S. aluminum casting industry faces as a result of an insufficient workforce and complex government policies.”
Constellium Muscle Shoals will use the funds to add up to 300 million pounds of annual aluminum casting capacity. With this added capacity, the plant expects to increase its recycled input; reduce its use of primary metal; and provide the U.S. industrial base an additional, self-reliant, domestic source of supply for aluminum rolling ingots. Constellium Muscle Shoals is also a major aluminum sheet supplier for the packaging and automotive markets.
On August 21, the Muscle Shoals plant hosted a special event to formally announce the new DC Casting Center, including a significant investment of the Department of Defense.
It was an opportunity to thank Congressman Robert Aderholt for his strong support of the project, as well as local partners such as the Shoals Economic Development Authority and Shoals Chamber of Commerce.
When complete, the new center will be capable of producing ingot in the alloys Muscle Shoals rolls for customers today, using more recycled aluminum, as well as military grade alloys if needed by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) for national security purposes. The project is expected to expand the plant’s casting capacity by 300 million pounds annually and to create 50 new jobs. Learn more: https:// ow.ly/xNC550T3WUY.
In addition to remarks by the Congressman, CEO Jean-Marc Germain, and plant president Buddy Stemple, the event included a ceremonial ground breaking of the building expansion and a reception for local civic and community leaders with the Muscle Shoals project team. Thank you to everyone who made this a truly special occasion and the start of a successful collaboration!
Constellium announced in July that its facility in Muscle Shoals, Alabama has been selected by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) for an investment of $23 million under Title III, Defense Production Act to rebuild its Direct Chill aluminum casting center.
The funding was awarded via the Defense Production Act Investments (DPAI) Program. DPAI is overseen by the Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Program (MCEIP) in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy. Constellium will use the funds to install state-of-the-art casting equipment on the site of a dismantled casting center intended to add up to 300 million pounds of annual casting capacity. With this added capacity, the plant expects to increase its recycled input, reduce its use of primary metal, and provide the U.S. industrial base an additional, self-reliant, domestic source of supply for aluminum rolling ingot.
In recent years, domestic U.S. capacity to cast rolling ingot has lagged the growing demand for flat rolled aluminum products across multiple manufacturing industries, forcing U.S. rolling mills to rely on imported slab to meet customer demand. Flat rolled aluminum products, including sheet and plate, are critical material inputs for the defense, aerospace, automotive, packaging and transportation industries. The expected additional domestic casting capacity enabled by this joint effort with the DoD will help secure the capacity to supply rolling ingot to U.S. rolling mills and provide a vital surge capacity to the DoD if needed to support U.S. security commitments around the globe.
“This investment under the Defense Production Act will enable our industry to meet the rapidly increasing demand for the aluminum products needed not only for our national security, but also necessary for the overall U.S. manufacturing sector and a healthy economy,” commented Buddy Stemple, President of Constellium Muscle Shoals. “We are very excited to have this opportunity to partner with the DoD to help strengthen our industrial base.”
Constellium Muscle Shoals is a major aluminum sheet supplier for the packaging and automotive markets. The plant has the capacity to produce over 1 billion pounds per year of finished aluminum coils. Muscle Shoals also operates a world-class recycling center able to recycle the equivalent of 20 billion aluminum cans per year.
