Schafer Celebrates Aerospace, Defense Growth with New Facility

Harris Corporation Sees Opportunities in Huntsville

September 30, 2011 -

Jim Bolte (L) chair-elect of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County Board of Directors, presents a commemorative plaque to Wes Covell, chief growth officer of Harris Corporation.

Harris Corporation has opened a new office in Huntsville to support the communications and information technology needs of a diverse range of U.S. Army programs.

A team of more than 60 employees at the new Harris office are providing sales, program management, engineering and technical support to the Army aviation, ballistic missile defense, space and research and development communities. Their focus is on delivering capabilities from across Harris, including the world's most advanced tactical radios, integrated network solutions, and secure, reliable communication systems.

Jim Bolte, chair-elect of the Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County Board of Directors, said the expansion of Harris into Huntsville is a major announcement for the community.

“It is not every day that we have the opportunity to celebrate the expansion into our community of a company that has more than 16,000 employees and that generates about $6 billion in revenue worldwide annually. But today is that day,” Bolte said.

"The Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville is a unique Army installation employing more than 35,000 people working across dozens of Army programs and commands," said Dan Pearson, executive vice president and chief operating officer, Harris Corporation. "We're investing in this community to meet their requirements for world-class networked tactical communications and information technology systems and support, today and in the future."

Harris supports nearly 20 programs headquartered in Huntsville, including Unmanned Aerial Systems, Helicopters, Air Traffic Control, Command Post Platform, Mobile Battle Command on the Move, High Mobility Artillery Rocket System and Ground Based Midcourse Defense.

Proximity to those customers is a major reason for the expansion of Harris into Huntsville, according to chief growth officer Wes Covell.

“We are honored to be in here in Huntsville. This is a momentous occasion for us because it allows us to be close to our customer. You can’t do that from Florida or D.C. Being with you customer can take you anywhere, from the battlefield to an office in Huntsville, Alabama,” he said.

Larger-scale projects include a $77 million contract awarded to Harris IT Systems to engineer, test and install IT infrastructure for the newly relocated U.S. Army Materiel Command headquarters building and a $25 million contract to deliver Highband Networking Radios to serve as the communications backbone of the U.S. Army's new Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System.

Congressman Mo Brooks said the announcement of Harris’ expansion gives great news to spread to his colleagues in the House of Representatives.

“We are facing a lot of economic challenges today. When I interact with other members of Congress, they are battling closures and layoffs. It is such a pleasure to represent a district that is so vibrant,” Brook said.