Northrop Grumman receives $13 million contract for munition system development

Oct. 13 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., receives over $13 million in a new modification production contract for further development of the M7 Spider Increment 1 anti-personnel munition system.

In a new award low-rate initial production contract announced Thursday by Pentagon officials, Northrop Grumman is slated to produce the M7 Spider Increment 1, a hand-emplaced, remote controlled, Man-in-the-Loop, anti-personnel munition system.

The M7 Spider Increment 1 is part of the Special Interest Program under the Office of the Secretary of Defense and is currently in the operational testing phase.

In February 2016, Northrop Grumman was awarded a definitive contract award of more than $35 million, with over $33 million, or 95 percent of the ultimate contract value, having already been funded by the Department of Defense.

The majority of the work under the modified contract will occur in Madison, Ala., and Melbourne, Fla., with an estimated completion date of Feb. 19, 2019. The project is said to be funded from fiscal 2016 and 2017 fund allocations along with other U.S. Army procurement fund in the total amount obligated to Northrop Grumman at the tune of $13.3 million.