If you go
What: An open house to detail plans for a munitions factory near Grayling
When: 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 16
Where: Kirtland Community College
Grayling residents will have another opportunity to preview a weapons manufacturing facility coming to town in the next few years.
A U.S. subsidiary of the Swedish defense company Saab announced the $75 million plan earlier this year. The complex will be built in the next few years and will assemble shoulder-mounted rifles.
The company will host an open house from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday, December 16 at Kirtland Community College.
Saab, Inc. Vice President and General Manager of Land Systems Brad Barnard will give a short presentation, then join other Saab officials to answer questions from residents.
This is the second open house event the company has hosted. The first was held in November where officials said Saab still needs to purchase 388 acres from the township.
The 90-acre complex will begin construction in 2025.
The facility will be used for final assembly on Saab’s AT4 product line. They’re shoulder mounted weapons with softball-sized rounds designed to break through heavily-armored objects.
Saab Inc. CEO Erik Smith said the guns will be tested at Camp Grayling, the nearby National Guard training facility.
Saab will also use the plant to build components of its Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), but the rounds themselves will not be fired and tested in Grayling.
The company has been touting the creation of around 70 jobs in engineering, assembly, management and more.
