Aging infrastructure is endangering US military’s capacity to innovate
Inspection of aircraft bolts in a lab at Goldwater Air National Guard Base. (Photo: US Air Force)
The US’s ability to prepare for future conflicts had been placed at risk with many Pentagon laboratories and testing centres being housed in poorly maintained and aging structures.
The Pentagon could face serious challenges in developing and accessing cutting-edge solutions due to infrastructural issues at its facilities.
Despite planning to invest more than US$5.5 billion in innovation over FY2024, the House Armed Services Committee Democratic representative John Garamendi (California) highlighted during a recent hearing that laboratory issues were “certainly a major part of the [department’s facilities] problem”.
The DoD and its services currently operate more than 50 laboratories and testing centres across 22 US states. Some of those units have been located in more than 60-year-old buildings and installations which have not been properly maintained over the
Our news & analysis is now part of Defence Insight®
A Basic-level or higher Defence Insight subscription is now required to view this content.
More from Defence Notes
-
![Eurosatory 2026: New public security needs drive personal protection equipment modernisation]()
Eurosatory 2026: New public security needs drive personal protection equipment modernisation
European law enforcement and public security agencies are entering a new cycle of investment in personal protection equipment (PPE), driven by evolving threat profiles, officer welfare requirements and advances in materials technology.
-
![The speed of relevance: how companies can navigate the new era of European defence procurement]()
The speed of relevance: how companies can navigate the new era of European defence procurement
European militaries face a rapidly evolving security landscape and defence production must accelerate to meet surging demand for platforms and equipment. Industry needs to adapt to ensure it gets its products into the hands of the end user, Evelyn Rafferty, Senior Director Aerospace and Defence - Europe at Plexus told Shephard’s Gerrard Cowan.
-
![Eurosatory 2026: Milrem Robotics puts forward multi-layered defence concept for NATO’s eastern flank]()
Eurosatory 2026: Milrem Robotics puts forward multi-layered defence concept for NATO’s eastern flank
Autonomous systems developer Milrem has evolved a model for an interoperable robotised approach to the Eastern Flank Deterrence Initiative (EFDI), showing how uncrewed systems could provide a multi-layered defence architecture in the air and on land along NATO’s eastern borders.
