NSWC Indian Head officials outline $3 billion modernization plan and nearby commercial campus push

Erin Ferriter, chief of staff at Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Indian Head, told Charles County commissioners the installation is midstream in a 15‑year modernization plan intended to update Cold War–era buildings and expand laboratory, production and safety infrastructure. "This is a 15 year, dollars 3,000,000,000 modernization plan," Ferriter said during the briefing.

The plan—part of the Navy's Enterprise Capital Modernization Program (ECMP) for Indian Head—focuses on restoring and modernizing existing facilities, Ferriter said, and is already funding a set of military construction projects. She described P190 as a near‑completion research, development, test and evaluation campus; P244 and P246 as projects to improve hazardous‑material handling and mixed‑cast cure processes; and P199 as a manufacturing services and administrative support building.

Why it matters: NSWC Indian Head is the Navy's designated arsenal site for energetics and energetic systems, and county officials said the work supports local jobs and private investment around the installation. "We are the Navy's only arsenal," Ferriter said, adding that Indian Head provides surge capacity for production and accepts R&D work that is not profitable for industry alone.

Ferriter gave a snapshot of the installation's scale: she cited contracting efforts in fiscal 2025 of about $936,000,000, more than 900 buildings on site and roughly 796 scientists and engineers employed at Indian Head. She also said Indian Head had successfully scaled a new underwater explosive—described in the briefing as the first in 40 years—and that the installation sustains both government and industry safety work.

County economic development staff emphasized the local implications. "Our mission is the Western Technology Corridor," Michelle Fry, deputy director of economic development, said, noting the county funded a liaison position to coordinate with the base, the Maryland Aviation Consortium (MAC), College of Southern Maryland and Charles County Public Schools on workforce development and outreach.

Officials described a two‑track approach to regional growth: ECMP funding is earmarked for on‑base infrastructure and production buildings, Ferriter said, while complementary private investment and partnership activity is occurring outside the gate. To accelerate technology transition, NSWC discussed the Maryland Energetics Innovation Hub (MEIH) concept and a separate commercial campus referred to as ACME that would locate near Indian Head "within 30" minutes, leverage government R&D and attract private capital.

An NSWC representative described ACME as a private commercial campus that will enable companies to co‑locate near Indian Head and said an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) solicitation produced strong industry interest. "That success is likely to lead to well over a $100,000,000 of investments," the representative said.

Commissioners asked how the ECMP funds would benefit communities outside the gate; Ferriter and NSWC staff clarified the ECMP line items are for on‑base buildings and infrastructure, while partnerships, PIAs and CRADAs (collaborative research agreements) are helping stimulate nearby commercial development and workforce opportunities. County staff and NSWC officials pointed to a May 28 groundbreaking tied to MEIH/ACME as an early public milestone and said they are coordinating outreach, marketing and job fairs to connect local residents with future contractor and company hiring.

The briefing concluded with county officials and commissioners expressing support for continued coordination on contracting opportunities and workforce pipelines. The board did not take legislative action on the matter during the session; the presentation was an informational briefing.