Northrop Grumman to establish $200M Waynesboro facility

Falls Church-based Fortune 500 defense contractor Northrop Grumman will invest more than $200 million to establish an advanced electronics manufacturing and testing facility in Waynesboro, creating an estimated 300 jobs over the next five years, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Tuesday.

“Northrop Grumman’s expanding Virginia footprint sends a powerful message that the commonwealth is a magnet for investment underpinned by a next-generation workforce,” Youngkin said in a statement. “This global leader’s cutting-edge facility in Waynesboro will provide job opportunities that attract and retain high-quality talent and create a transformational ripple effect for the entire region.”

The 315,000-square-foot building will be on Shenandoah Village Drive, and Pennsylvania-based Equus Capital Partners will be the project’s developer, according to the governor’s office. Construction will “begin soon,” according to a Northrop Grumman spokesperson. The company anticipates the building will open in 2025 and be ready for production in 2026. The facility jobs will be varied engineering and manufacturing roles, according to the spokesperson.

Northrop Grumman employs roughly 95,000 employees — 6,800 in Virginia — and reported $36.6 billion in 2022 revenue. The company ranked No. 413 on Fortune magazine’s Global 500 list for 2023, and No. 113 on its annual 1000 list of U.S. corporations for the year.

“This new facility will increase capacity to manufacture and test advanced electronics and mission solutions to meet our customers’ growing needs,” Kathy Warden, Northrop Grumman’s chair, CEO and president, said in a statement. “We are pleased to expand our technology presence in the commonwealth and look forward to welcoming more people to our mission-driven team.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the City of Waynesboro to secure the project for Virginia. Youngkin approved an $8.5 million grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to assist the city. The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, a discretionary incentive program that provides free customizable workforce recruiting and training services for eligible businesses locating or expanding in Virginia, will support Northrop Grumman’s job creation. The program is a collaboration between VEDP and the Virginia Community College System.