WASHINGTON — Northrop Grumman is now selling dozens of microelectronics components, made in government-certified facilities on US soil, to other “aerospace and defense companies,” a Northrop release said. Previously the Northrop parts were only available to military programs that Northrop itself was working on.
Opening up access to the Northrop electronics is part of a years-long Pentagon-led push to wean the US defense industry off Asian suppliers under increasing threat from China. The Defense Department supports “trusted foundries” officially certified as secure against supply chain threats.
Defense-specific microelectronics also receive some funding under the CHIPS Act, which is largely administered by the Commerce Department to help revive US high-tech manufacturing after decades of offshoring.
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The three Northrop manufacturing facilities, each with a different specialization, are the Advanced Technology Lab in Linthicum, Maryland; Micro-Line in Apopka, Florida; and Space Park Foundry in Redondo Beach, California. The California and Maryland sites are semiconductor foundries with US government accreditation, while the Florida facility focuses on “advanced packaging.” In the microelectronics world “packaging” does not mean packing things in bubble wrap; it’s a technically challenging process of integrating different types of tiny chips together so they work as a single “electronics package.”
Northrop says its facilities are capable of not just churning out not standard components but also working with customers to design, test, and build custom circuitry.
“By opening our defense-grade manufacturing facilities to partners, Northrop Grumman is helping to expand and strengthen the resilience of America’s semiconductor industry and supply chain,” boasted Vern Boyle, who oversees all three sites as VP of the Northrop Grumman Microelectronics Center, in a statement. “We are providing partners with unprecedented access to design and develop domestic chips as well as the ability to directly purchase from us.”