The State April 01, 2007
Lowcountry companies make armored vehicles for the military
By Noelle Phillips
LADSON — A blue glow illuminates a dark production floor as hundreds of welders piece together sheets of steel. Throughout the day, new armored trucks are loaded onto flatbed trailers at Force Protection Inc. in Ladson.
About 15 miles down I-26 in North Charleston, sparks fly from grinders as workers polish welds on an armored truck at Protected Vehicles Inc., a company founded by Garth Barrett, former chief executive officer at Force Protection.
A wartime sense of urgency prevails at these companies as they compete with each other — and seven other defense contractors — to meet the military’s demand for armored vehicles. And the $7 billion contract that goes with it.
The two companies build vehicles that can withstand blasts from roadside bombs or improvised explosive devices. Their products are desperately needed in an Iraq war zone where 70 percent of casualties are caused by such blasts.
Despite Barrett’s defection from Force Protection and the competition for the contract, neither company will talk about any rivalry.
“The quote hangs out there somewhere that ‘The enemy here are the IEDs,’ ” said Drew Felty, program manager at Protected Vehicles.
A CHALLENGE
The Marine Corps is overseeing the $7 billion military program to develop new armored trucks that will be used for tasks such as transporting troops and clearing mines.
The Corps is testing two prototypes each from Force Protection, Protected Vehicles and their competitors, said Capt. Jeff Landis, a spokesman for the Marine Corps Systems Command, which is overseeing the project.
The trucks that survive explosions while easily maneuvering tough terrain will be chosen.
It is likely more than one company will be chosen. The military has asked for 4,000 vehicles by the end of this year and it will take multiple companies to make them that fast, Landis said.
The Marines have already asked the two South Carolina companies to advance-produce a limited number, Landis said.
“It’s proven to save lives,” he said. “That’s why we’re aggressive in putting these out there.”
The military is developing another program that could deliver an even bigger payday and help secure the companies’ future.
It wants to replace the Humvee with a truck that is more survivable in today’s war zones.
“The Marines have concluded that the operating environment in Iraq is the future,” said John Pike, a military analyst with GlobalSecurity.org. “They’re just not going ashore anymore in soft vehicles.”
The military will release plans for that program later this year, Landis said.
WAR DRAGS ON, COMPANY GROWS
A publicly traded company, Force Protection moved from California to the Charleston-area in 1997. The company struggled at first.
The U.S. military was reluctant to invest in bulky vehicles that got poor gas mileage and were difficult to ship overseas.
However, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan forced the military to change direction, and it bought 11 Buffalo mine-clearing trucks in 2003.
In November 2006, the military ordered $214 million worth of Force Protection’s vehicles, doubling what it had spent with the company the previous 10 months of the year.
For the year, Force Protection turned an $18.2 million profit after losing $13.5 million in 2005, according to its annual report. It was its first full-year profit.
Today, Force Protection employs 850 people who also build armored vehicles for the Iraqi and British militaries, said Tommy Pruitt, the company’s public-relations director.
And the company is expanding. It is buying a manufacturing facility in Florence and has bought land in Edgefield and Summerville for training, research and development.
PRESSING STEEL
Protected Vehicles Inc. started in late 2005 when Barrett left Force Protection and took a team of employees with him.
Barrett would not disclose his start-up costs, although he said the initial investment was in the millions. He used money from a California investor to refurbish the building and to hire workers, especially engineers.
Today, the company employs 277 people.
Barrett won’t discuss why he left Force Protection. But his philosophy for producing the armored trucks offers hints.
Protected Vehicles builds its armored truck bodies starting with flat sheets of steel. The company’s workers press and bend them on site.
At Force Protection, the company hires another company to press the V-shaped steel hulls for its trucks.
“I’m not a great fan of outsourcing parts,” he said. “You’re giving away all your profits. I’m a big fan of taking flat steel and building your own vehicles.”
When Barrett decided to start his own venture, he considered locating in another state.
But an old warehouse in the Charleston Naval Yard with a press capable of bending huge sheets of steel became available.
“If it hadn’t, I would have started somewhere else,” Barrett said.
Protected Vehicles partners with three other companies to add automotive parts and to develop armor. The company has room to expand at its facility in North Charleston and continues developing new products.
Felty said the company also plans to hire hundreds of new employees within coming months. “We don’t anticipate stopping anytime soon,” he said.
JOBS AND MONEY
For now, Force Protection and Protected Vehicles expect to call Charleston home for the long run.
The companies have found a steady work force of welders in the Lowcountry. They need more and will continue developing the labor pool.
Force Protection offers on-site training and Protected Vehicles is reopening an old Navy nuclear welding training facility on its campus.
“I just think quite honestly, we’ve been fortunate with Charleston and we’ve been successful in getting a qualified work force,” Barrett said.
The companies have been good for Charleston.
The Charleston Metro Chamber’s Center for Business Research estimated Force Protection alone has fed more than $200 million into the local economy. It did not have figures for Protected Vehicles.
Those dollars come through buying local supplies and through employee wages.
But Carrie Reavenell, a welder at Force Protection, said the job offers more than a paycheck and immediate medical benefits.
It provides satisfaction.
“I don’t particularly like war,” she said. “But if we need something to prevent people from dying, I want these vehicles.”
Reavenell said she recently received a “thank you” from a soldier’s family who saw her in a Force Protection T-shirt.
“You know how good that makes me feel?” she said.
© Copyright 2007, The State
