WASHINGTON – The Army’s Organic Industrial Base is a strategic asset with a generational workforce that provides warfighters critical materiel and sustainment support that industry cannot. That was the message Army senior leaders and sustainers delivered at the annual Army House Depot Caucus Reception on Capitol Hill, June 3.
“Our OIB is not an afterthought – it’s a critical component of what makes our Army the deterrence that our nation needs right now,” Gen. Christopher LaNeve, vice chief of staff of the Army said. “I look forward to meeting as many people as possible here to tell you about how we are ensuring our industrial base is truly healthy for decades to continue serving our nation.”
Reps. Blake Moore and Eric Sorensen hosted Army leaders on Capitol Hill as co-chairs of the U.S. House Military Depot and Industrial Facilities caucus, a bipartisan group within the House of Representatives dedicated to policy issues that affect military industrial facilities and educates other members of Congress on matters of importance to the military community. Mike Obadal, under secretary of the Army, and Lt. Gen. Chris Mohan, commanding general of Army Materiel Command, joined LaNeve to provide caucus members and their staff an update on OIB transformation and readiness.
In fiscal year 2025, the Army executed more than $1 billion in modernization projects at OIB sites, including deploying new robotic welding systems on the M1 Abrams production line at Anniston Army Depot, modernizing a critical bomb production line at McAlester Army Depot and utilizing advanced manufacturing to create a custom fixture for a new vehicle production line at Joint Manufacturing and Technology Center at Rock Island Arsenal.
While the Army is continuing its 15-year plan to modernize facilities, production lines and workforce, last year marked a new chapter: an accelerated push to transform and reimagine the OIB. A 90-day assessment of each Army OIB site revealed that rapid transformation is required to ensure the sites are better utilized and function at a healthy workload to meet current demands and maintain surge capacity.
The Army’s OIB Transformation Strategy, approved in April, is focused on each site meeting today’s tempo and tomorrow’s surge through key strategies like modernizing infrastructure and production lines, digital engineering and data-driven operations, workforce development and improved energy and cyber resilience.
“The OIB is the backbone of Army readiness, but the world is changing, and the OIB is needs to change too,” said Mohan, whose command oversees the 23 arsenals, depots and ammunition plants that comprise the OIB. “We are using new business practices like commercial solutions openings, enhanced use leases and changing the way we are doing military construction to transform ourselves while simultaneously supporting high operational demands for U.S. forces and allies.”
Mohan discussed Project Facilities Operations Readiness Growth and Experience (FORGE) at Anniston, where the Army is testing a method to consolidate several related military construction and repair and maintenance projects under one contract. This streamlined method allows the Army to not only build up important facilities but also fix roads and purchase production equipment at the same time.
Through the transformation strategy, this effort and more on the way will ultimately convert the OIB from a fragmented, maintenance-focused enterprise into a strategically aligned industrial engine capable of delivering ready combat formations in competition and conflict.
“We’re driving hard with change,” Mohan said. “But here’s what’s not going to change: we cannot AI our way out of doing production or turning wrenches on tanks.”
Army senior leaders and Members of Congress in attendance shared the sentiment that partnership and communication will help strengthen the OIB and enable continued growth in its workload and workforce.
“It’s more important than ever that we expand the workforce that we need to protect our defense in the future,” Sorensen said. “I’m proud to work alongside my neighbors at Rock Island Arsenal to keep our country strong and safe – supporting them and strengthening the OIB is essential work for every single one of us.”
| Date Taken: |
06.03.2026 |
| Date Posted: |
06.10.2026 14:50 |
| Story ID: |
567349 |
| Location: |
US |
| Web Views: |
29 |
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