Arkansas' two large ammunition plants are working around the clock to meet demand spurred by a nationwide run on ammunition as coronavirus concerns arise.
Gun and ammunition maker Sig Sauer Inc. operates a plant in Jacksonville and Remington Arms runs a big one in Lonoke.
"We have implemented precautionary health and safety measures for our employees, who remain our first priority, but at this time, we are at full production," Tom Taylor, chief marketing officer, executive vice president of commercial sales at Sig Sauer, said in response to emailed questions. "Plans are in place to increase capacity as quickly as possible while honoring the needs of our employees, some of whom have been out for personal reasons such as child schooling and care."
He noted several federal agencies, including the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security have designated Sig Sauer and its manufacturing facilities as essential for national security.
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In a news release last week, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearm and ammunition industry, expressed its gratitude to the Department of Homeland Security for including the firearm industry's manufacturing, distribution, retail and range businesses as essential services that should remain open during the coronavirus outbreak.
A handful of state and local officials around the country have bucked this ruling, contending gun retailers and ranges aren't essential and hinder social-distancing requirements. In Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson has directed residents not to gather in groups of 10 or more but has not issued a shelter-in-place order.
The Sig Sauer plant in Jacksonville is operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week and plans are to add workers as safely and quickly as possible, Taylor said.
"The factory is running round the clock, full of employees, and more are needed," Taylor said.
The need for more workers comes as claims for unemployment in the state skyrocket because of the coronavirus outbreak. According to the economic institute Heartland Forward in Bentonville, claims for unemployment in Arkansas for the week end that ended March 28 stood at nearly 27,000, up nearly 200% from the previous week.
Eric Suarez, communications and media manager for Remington Outdoor Co., the parent company of Remington Arms, declined to comment in detail about the effect of the coronavirus on the company as a whole but said in an email that the Lonoke plant is 100% operational and making ammunition in accordance with its production schedules.
Small gun stores and big-box retailers reported that guns and ammunition flew off the shelves last month in response to fears related to the coronavirus pandemic. Ammunition demand is still high, with most stores shelves are bare of popular pistol and rifle ammunition and with many shops limiting purchases when they have it in stock.
In March, National Instant Criminal Background checks for firearm purchases shattered records for the month and for any single month since the FBI started tracking the figure in 1999. Checks for March stood at 3.7 million. For the first three months of the year checks stood at 9.2 million a record for the three month period.
Checks for firearm purchases in 2019 totaled 28.36 million, up from 26.18 million in 2018 and breaking 2016's record 27.54 million. While the FBI background-check figures don't represent the number of guns sold, they are generally used as indicators of firearms demand.
In 2017, Sig Sauer centralized its ammunition production at a new plant in Jacksonville. The plant makes small-arms ammunition for the civilian, law enforcement and military markets worldwide and produces about 10 million rounds a month, according to earlier reporting by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The company also builds night sights at the plant.
Based in Newington, N.H., Sig Sauer is part of a worldwide group of firearms-makers, including J.P. Sauer and Sohn and Blaser, GmbH in Germany and Swiss Arms AG in Switzerland. Sig Sauer Inc. employs about 1,700 workers in eight sites in its U.S. operations. The Jacksonville plant employs about 160 workers as of late March, according to the company.
In 2016, Remington Outdoor Co. said that it would add more than 80 jobs at its Lonoke plant as part of a $12 million expansion. Madison, N.C.-based Remington began production in Lonoke in 1969. In 2016, the company employed about 1,200 at its Arkansas plant. It invested $32 million upgrading the plant in 2013. In May 2018, Remington Outdoor emerged from bankruptcy after a reorganization plan converted into equity more than $775 million in debt.
According to an April report by research company WalletHub, Arkansas ranks fifth among states in economic dependence on the gun industry, up from seventh a year earlier. WalletHub ranked the 50 states on 17 key metrics that examined the gun industry, gun prevalence and gun politics. Idaho ranked first and New Jersey ranked last in economic dependence on the gun industry. Arkansas ranked second-highest in gun ownership and fourth in total firearms-industry output per capita.
In late March, a WalletHub study ranking the vulnerability of state's economies to the coronavirus outbreak, placed Arkansas at 42nd nationally. WalletHub evaluated 50 states and the District of Columbia on two factors, "High Impact Industries & Workforce" and "Resources for Businesses to Cope Better with the Crisis," according to the company. Those aspects were examined using 10 metrics.
According to the 2019 Firearms and Ammunition Industry Impact study by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, Arkansas had 3,101 jobs directly related to the industry with wages of $127 million while supplier jobs stood at 1,408 with wages valued at $78.9 million. Arkansas ranked sixth nationally in industry jobs per capita with New Hampshire ranked first.
A report on firearms and ammunition sales released in July by market research firm IBIS World indicated sales for 2019 would generate $17.4 billion in the U.S. with an increase annualized rate of 4.5% over the past five years. Small-arms ammunition makes up 27% of those sales. The report predicts annual revenue growth of 2.3% over the next five years in the combined segment to revenue of $19.4 billion by 2024.
"However, as in the past, this dynamic is subject to change rapidly as a result of current events, and consumer demand will likely remain at relatively high levels," the report notes.
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