Global defense technology company Lockheed Martin has announced plans to build a new 225,000 sq. ft. manufacturing and assembly facility in Titusville’s Enterprise Park area, as it prepares to fulfill a decades-long contract with the U.S. Navy for the Trident II D5 missile Strategic Weapons Systems. The project is expected to create 300 new jobs for the area, and result in the stationing of over 100 military personnel at the site.
In a recent press conference, the company credited assistance it received from the Florida Department of Commerce, the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast (EDC), and the North Brevard Economic Development Zone (NBEDZ), the latter of which provided a local financial incentive to make the project possible. It is projected that the average annual wage per job created for this project will exceed $89,000.
Referred to as Project “Topaz” during the search process to identify a site for the production facility, “Topaz” builds upon a 2016 decision by the company to relocate its Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) program from California to the Titusville area, a move effected in 2019; that project, which resulted in more than 320 new jobs created locally, also received a financial inducement from the NBEDZ, under the project name “Landmark.”
The D5 missile is the most advanced ballistic missile in the world and is currently aboard U.S. OHIO-class and U.K. VANGUARD-class submarines. In 2025, Lockheed Martin will mark 70 years of support to the U.S. Navy as a prime contractor in developing and sustaining the missiles that form the backbone of the nation’s sea-based deterrence through the company’s FBM program. For more information on the company’s defense sector work, visit www.LockheedMartin.com.
