History of the Industrial Park
Kansas Army Ammunition Plant was constructed in the early 1940’s during World War II and supplied bombs and artillery shells to support the war effort. Prior to construction the area was used for general farming and livestock operations. The land is very much the same today; with over 10,000 acres environmentally clean.
The plant was placed in stand-by status after the war and was declared surplus and offered for sale until it was reactivated to support the Korean War in 1950 when it again produced bombs and artillery shells and cartridge cases. At the end of the war it was put back in standby status until December of 1966 when it was reactivated for the Viet Nam War. Day & Zimmermann Inc., became the operating contractor in the early 1970’s and through the efforts of Senator Bob Dole and the Army the plant was modernized during the 1980’s and 1990’s to produce the modern new munitions used successfully in Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. These weapons included 155mm Improved Conventional Munition (ICM), Combined Effects Munition (CEM) and the most technically advanced weapon system ever built, the Sensor Fused Weapon System (SFW). The plant also continued to produce its core products, artillery and mortar munitions.
In 2005 the Department of Defense recommended closure of the facility under the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Act passed by Congress and the transfer of the munitions manufacturing mission to other locations. In 2006 Labette County formed a Local Redevelopment Planning Authority (LRPA) to plan for the acceptance and management of the site when it was transferred from the US Government to the LRPA. In 2007 this Planning Authority will become an Implementation Authority (LRA) with the mission of accepting, marketing, developing and managing the new Great Plains Industrial Park.