Missile manufacturing adopts 'McDonald's model' for speed, lower cost

The U.S. military industry is accelerating missile production capacity, adopting faster and lower-cost manufacturing methods to replenish stockpiles depleted by recent military operations in the Middle East. Alongside traditional defense giants expanding their facilities, several defense tech startups, supported by the U.S. Department of Defense, are pushing a highly standardized, modular missile manufacturing approach.

This new production method aims for lower costs and higher speeds to boost wartime replenishment capabilities. Doug Denneny, president of defense contractor Co-Aspire, described it as the "McDonald's model" for missile manufacturing. In leased workshops, this approach combines a small number of 3D-printed parts with numerous off-the-shelf commercial components and modular designs. Technicians, trained for about a month, assemble missiles following standardized procedures to shorten production time and reduce manufacturing costs, moving away from the need for expensive, specialized equipment typical of traditional factories.

Beyond simplified manufacturing, new missile systems are also being developed with more intuitive interfaces. John Ferrari, former commander of the White Sands Missile Range, stated that the software design for next-generation missile systems should be as simple as possible, aiming for personnel to "operate missiles as naturally as using an iPhone." This simplification is intended to shorten training times and accelerate the formation of combat readiness.

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operate missiles as naturally as using an iPhone

The Financial Times highlighted that the wars in Ukraine and recent Middle East conflicts have underscored the difficulty the U.S. faces in rapidly replenishing its missile stocks. Major defense companies like Lockheed Martin and RTX (formerly Raytheon) have invested in expanding their missile production facilities to increase output of systems like the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD). Concurrently, the Pentagon is actively supporting startups such as Anduril and Castelion to build new missile supply chains that are lower in cost and rapidly scalable.

Castelion, founded just three years ago, has secured a contract to produce over 12,000 hypersonic missiles within five years. With its planned New Mexico factory, the company expects to produce approximately 6,000 missiles annually, each costing around $400,000. Industry insiders believe that standardized designs, extensive use of commercial parts, and simplified manufacturing processes can overcome the bottlenecks that limit expansion speed in the traditional defense industry.

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McDonald's model