House Select Committee on China praises Auburn’s role in strengthening U.S. defense industrial base

Auburn University’s role in facilitating collaboration between government, academia and industry necessary for maintaining national security was on full display Monday at the university’s Research and Innovation Campus in Huntsville.

Congressional heavyweights convened on the campus just outside Redstone Arsenal to confer on the vulnerability of the U.S. defense industrial base in relation to challenges posed by China. Hosted by the Auburn University Applied Research Institute (AUARI), the roundtable discussion brought together members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), including committee chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.), alongside Congressmen Dale Strong (R-AL) and Robert Aderholt (R-AL), and representatives from leading defense sector companies, including Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grummon, General Dynamics and BAE.

Established in 2023, the House Select Committee on the CCP aims to build consensus on developing strategies to safeguard American interests against Chinese threats.

"We were excited to be able to host this important discussion regarding the defense industrial base with the chairman of the House Select Committee on the CCP, along with key members of the committee and Alabama delegation members," said AUARI executive director Jonathan Pettus. "It's another example of Auburn facilitating and participating in collaborations between government and industry on issues of national importance."

Those issues included everything from supply chain obstacles to engineering workforce gaps.

"A big part of what we're focusing on is how (the defense industrial base) is growing in innovation, scale and capacity," Moolenaar said. "We're also looking at supply chain issues, and on having a strategy to anticipate the challenges of the future."

Pettus said that the AUARI has Auburn perfectly positioned to help meet those challenges.

"A major focus of our Applied Research Institute is ensuring that we are leveraging Auburn research to enable the advancement of our national security," he said. "But Auburn University is also playing a major role in perhaps the most critical element of the long term supply chain by providing a healthy pipeline of engineers and scientists to enable the United States to continue to lead in innovation, product development and advanced manufacturing."

Strong agreed, praising Auburn University's contributions to national security initiatives in the Rocket City.

“I want to thank Auburn for making this meeting possible,” Strong said, “and for their continued partnership with our community on the important national security work we do here in Huntsville.”