Not just AAC. Freedom Group Moving Almost Everything to Alabama

**30 cal slut** · 05-16-14, 08:42

from the Outdoor Wire last night:

The buzz around the industry early yesterday was that Advanced Armament Corp was being closed down and relocated. Before the end of business yesterday, employees at six Remington properties along with two production lines in Ilion, New York, were told their companies- and jobs- were relocating to Huntsville, Alabama.

Here's the official company statement from spokesperson Teddy Novin:

"Earlier today we announced the consolidation of multiple company plants into our Huntsville, Alabama facility. This was a strategic business decision to concentrate our resources into fewer locations and improve manufacturing efficiency and quality. We are working hard to retain as many from the affected facilities as possible."

The companies being relocated and their current locations are:
Advanced Armament Corp, Lawrenceville, Georgia; Montana Rifleman, Kalispell, Montana; TAPCO, Kennesaw, Georgia; LAR Manufacturing, West Jordan, Utah;
Para-Ordnance, Pineville, North Carolina; and DPMS, St. Cloud, Minnesota. Additionally, the Bushmaster production and Remington 1911 production lines will also be relocating from Ilion, New York.

A Remington source tells The Outdoor Wire Digital Network the company will be offering relocation opportunities but an attractions of modern state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities like the one in Huntsville, Alabama is their innate ability to eliminate head count without negatively impacting production outputs.

We'll keep you posted.

**sinister** · 05-16-14, 13:19

This has the on-paper potential to be really good (if they can get the intellectual capital and experience of the current employees to move to Huntsville, consolidating a lot of manufacturing talent into one location -- ARs and furniture, 1911 pistols, and bolt actions and cans).

If they can't get the folks to move there'll be a potential hiring boom in Alabama/North Georgia, and lower Tennessee for machinists, gunsmiths, and metal and plastic workers, as well as management. Look how well it's worked for FNUSA - Columbia, SC, and FNUSA - Fredericksburg, Virginia. Beretta is also taking its business away from Accokeek, MD.

If they pay their high-experience employees to move, even better for both parties.

The attraction for workers breaking into the industry is new infrastructure and digs as well as new tooling and machinery. There may be a learning curve as you bring new staff on line -- but they may be with the company for between 5 and 20+ years.

ARs would consolidate the LAR, DPMS, Remington, TAPCO, and Bushmaster lines.

1911s would consolidate Para and Remington.

I presume Montana and AAC would consolidate the precision lines.

**30 cal slut** · 05-17-14, 08:12

Another tidbit I picked up this week from Colt's quarterly earnings call.

Colt reached a new labor agreement with the UAW, which gives Colt the flexibility to make handguns at a facility outside of its main factory in W. Hartford, CT.

I think this makes sense, if Colt is going to be coming out with a new polymer frame, striker-fired pistol in a few months.

Opens the door for Colt to move to gun friendlier climes at some point, just like Freedom Group.

**Hmac** · 05-17-14, 08:36

Yeh, a mildly big deal here in Minnesota. They contribute more than $100 million to the state's GSP and employ about 100 people. There's an attempt to tie the move to the Minnesota legislature's failed attempt to pass a New York-style gun bill, bug nobody is really buying it. It's about money, not state legislation. I haven't seen anything about it in any papers other than the St. Cloud local one. They're about 90 miles from here. The state is lousy with DPMS rifles.

http://www.sctimes.com/story/money/2...abama/9175723/

**sinister** · 05-17-14, 09:01

Correct. Tradition, emotion, and a union stranglehold don't trump the bottom line.

Would you pay $700 for a brand-new, in-box pre-70s quality Colt M1911A1 (with the horsey on the side)?

Springfield Armory would never have become a 1911 brand if Colt hadn't gone the retard road in the 80s.

**30 cal slut** · 05-17-14, 13:39

Consolidation is all about the bottom line.

This was probably all planned years ago when Freedom Group started rolling up gun and related manufacturers.