"The Army's prioritization on long-range artillery is the push behind expanding our manufacturing capacity and driving our modernization efforts," Watervliet Arsenal deputy to the commander Joseph Turcotte said in the release on Thursday.
"It is imperative that we have the tools necessary to fulfil our mission to the Department of Defense and this is an important step in completing that goal," Turcotte said.
Watervliet is modernizing the arsenal’s the quarter-mile-long "Big Gun Shop" that produced 16-inch guns used in every conflict from the Spanish-American War through the first Persian Gulf War, according to the release.
Watervliet moved gun-making to other facilities during the military drawdown of the 1990s, mothballing a large part of the facility, the release said.
Watervliet Arsenal is an US Army-owned-and-operated manufacturing facility, and is the oldest continuously active arsenal in the United States, according to the release.
