$21 million software facility project underway at Robins AFB

  • Published
  • By Amanda Creel
  • 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFPN) --  Air Force officials held a groundbreaking ceremony here Feb. 19 for a 70,000 square-foot software support facility targeted for occupation by January 2010.

The new, $21 million facility will be a two-story building designed to help Robins Air Force Base maintain its place as the Electronic Warfare Center of Excellence for the Air Force and position it to become the Electronic Warfare Center of Excellence for the Department of Defense.

Construction of the facility will join together three existing software facilities -- buildings 226, 227 and 330 -- to form a software support complex. It will also allow the 850 software employees to be located under one roof, rather than being located in different buildings throughout the base. Additionally, base officials said the project should bring approximately 360 high-tech jobs by 2012. 

The addition of the facility would allow base software maintainers to continue their present mission while increasing the 402nd Software Maintenance Group's core capabilities, said Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Owen, the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center commander. The facility would allow Robins AFB to continue to distinguish itself as an instrumental part of the vital defense mission for years to come.

Existing software support facilities presently support Air Force Special Operations Command forces as well as Air Combat Command and Air Mobility Command weapon systems. Base officials said they anticipate future workloads for newer systems including the F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, the Global Hawk and Predator.

Some of the group's many specialties include tactical communications, radar airborne avionics, Global Positioning Systems and electronic warfare.

The Army Corp of Engineers, in partnership with base civil engineers and the 402nd SMXG, will manage construction of the facility. McKnight Construction will be responsible for building the structure.

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