SCHUMER ANNOUNCES: HARRIS RADIO AWARDED CONTRACT WORTH $255 MILLION TO BUILD TWO- CHANNEL TACTICAL RADIOS FOR SPECIAL OPS UNITS
Modern Two-Channel Tactical Handheld Radios Will Be Manufactured In Rochester Through 2023
Schumer: Fed Investment Is Critical To Growth Of Rochester & Harris Radio
U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced today that Rochester’s Harris Corp. was awarded a contract worth $255,000,000 through the U.S. Special Operations Command.. Schumer explained that the company will use these funds to manufacture two-channel manpack radios for the United Station Special Operations Units and for American allies. The two-channel radios will enable Special Operations Forces to receive and distribute intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) data in the form of full motion video, support simultaneous dual channel line of sight, and advanced waveforms. Schumer said that this contract will replace Harris’ legacy manpack radios like the the AN/PRC-117F and AN/PRC-117G and the manufacturing work on this contract will be based in Rochester through 2023.
“This massive, and well-earned, $255 million contract will support jobs at Harris Radio, in addition to boosting the entire Rochester-area economy. Harris Radio has proved time and time again that they can make superior radios for the U.S. military and our allies around the world,” said Schumer. “Their radios are durable, dependable, and innovative, which means they have a long useful life to support some of the toughest missions around the globe.”
Schumer has long fought to keep Harris Corp. and its local subsidiary in Rochester by advocating for their programs during the Congressional appropriations process and working the Department of Defense to ensure producers like Harris had an even playing field to compete for the major Joint Tactical Radio System radios contracts. Schumer visited Rochester in March 2016 to announce a major push to secure new federal investment opportunities. During his March 2016 visit, Schumer also celebrated the Army’s selection of Harris in February 2016 as one of three suppliers for the U.S. Army’s 10-year $12.7 billion Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) “Manpack” radio contract. In addition, in June of 2016, Schumer announced that Harris had received a $1.7 billion contract to manufacture radios from Harris’s RE-7800 family of tactical radios. In 2015, Schumer helped Harris bring a new SINCGARS Radio Manufacturing Line to Rochester. The “SINCGARS” manufacturing line was officially installed at the Jefferson Road facility in Rochester in 2016 and it supports 150 local jobs.
Harris moved this line to Rochester with the support of Schumer and local lawmakers after Harris’ 2015 acquisition of Exelis.
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