Rohde & Schwarz USA Opens $40 Million Air Traffic Control Equipment Plant

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On August 25, Rohde & Schwarz USA held the inauguration ceremony for its new manufacturing center in Frederick, Maryland. The project represents an investment of $40 million and covers 87,000 square feet of facility space, primarily producing the CERTIUM Voice Communication System and digital VoIP voice switching equipment for use at U.S. airports, air traffic control towers, and other air traffic control facilities.

Rohde & Schwarz USA leased the facility in 2025 and completed production line deployment and staffing in less than a year. The plant currently employs approximately 100 people, with production areas equipped with air traffic control voice communication system manufacturing and testing facilities. The company plans to expand its U.S. domestic production capacity through the Frederick manufacturing center, with related expansion plans expected to add more than 350 new positions.

In April 2026, Rohde & Schwarz USA was awarded a contract by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration for air traffic control voice communication systems, with a maximum contract value of $4.9 billion. The project will replace existing analog voice communication infrastructure with the CERTIUM Voice Communication System, with equipment to be produced at the Frederick plant and an expanded facility in Coppell, Texas. The first system was already put into operation at Allegheny County Airport in Pennsylvania in September 2025.

As of August, the first phase of CERTIUM VCS deployment has been completed, with the 140th system installed at Rapid City Regional Airport in South Dakota. During the same period, the U.S. air traffic control system has installed 176 IP voice switching systems, completed upgrades at 388 radio station sites, and replaced 63% of copper wire communication infrastructure with high-speed fiber optic, 5G wireless, or low-Earth-orbit satellite communication facilities. The FAA plans to complete a new round of air traffic control system construction by the end of 2028.