The Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration has completed a new High Explosives Science and Engineering facility, or HESE, designed to enhance nuclear weapons maintenance and high-explosives research operations at the Pantex Plant.
What Will the HESE Facility Support?
DOE said Wednesday the new facility combines operations previously spread across 15 World War II-era buildings and provides modern infrastructure for high explosives science, engineering and technology development to support weapons maintenance and surveillance missions.
The facility will help Pantex address future production and modernization requirements as the agency continues work on programs tied to the U.S. nuclear deterrent. Pantex, which operates as NNSA's High Explosives Center of Excellence for Manufacturing, serves as the nation's primary site for the final assembly, dismantlement and maintenance of nuclear weapons.
NNSA Administrator Brandon Williams said the facility replaces outdated infrastructure that no longer aligns with current security requirements. He added that the new building provides mission-equipped space for essential high-explosives work supporting the nation's nuclear deterrent.
“HESE will give Pantex the modern, mission equipped space needed to advance essential high-explosive work—and it's built for what comes next,” said Williams.
How Does the Facility Connect to Current Weapons Programs?
The facility's opening comes as NNSA advances multiple nuclear modernization initiatives involving the Pantex Plant. Earlier this year, the agency announced the completion of the first B61-13 nuclear gravity bomb, a weapon designed to support the nation's strategic deterrence mission. NNSA also completed production of the final W88 Alteration 370 warhead unit, concluding a modernization program intended to refresh key components of the Navy's submarine-launched nuclear warhead system.
