ARDEC Director's Corner
At ARDEC our slogan is, “Always a Step Ahead.” We act as though somebody’s life depends on
being a step ahead because it does.
ARDEC provides armaments that overmatch those of our adversaries. We do this so that our
warfighters and homeland defenders succeed in every fight. To achieve this we provide world-class
leadership in engineering, science excellence, quality and innovation, and we are relied upon to
objectively evaluate armament solutions so that we know our true progress and how it relates to
our adversaries.
There has never been a more challenging or exciting time for this mission. ARDEC is a strategic
national asset that has contributed to some or all aspects of the design, development, and production
of the U.S. armaments used from World War II into our current conflicts.
Our current challenges have expanded such that we prepare for a full spectrum of threats. Our Nation
faces non-state and hybrid actors, networks of small militant groups, more dense urban environments,
confounding mixtures of terror and propaganda, enemy operations planned within the homeland and other
challenges, some still unknown.
ARDEC’s legacy is built on understanding and solving complex warfighter problems and saving lives. We
are leveraging this strength to support the needs of homeland defenders who plan for interagency operations.
This includes working with New York City and other major northeastern centers from our regional hub to the
nation, centered at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey.
We succeed because we are:
- Steeped in the Army Values: Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity and Personal Courage.
- Collaborative: This is key to our success. Our workforce embraces teamwork, mutual respect, open
communication and creativity. All of our efforts are integrated with and leverage the vast technological
resources, nationally and internationally.
- Innovative: We embrace all forms and sources of innovation, internal and external, evolutionary and revolutionary.
Disruption to the key to remaining, “Always a step ahead”.
- Good Partners: Partnership is an important part of our organizational strategy. ARDEC proactively seeks partnerships
with customers, industry, academia, and other government agencies. These partnerships accelerate the development and
transition of new technologies for the Warfighter.
While you are on our website, please read our news or explore the “About Us” and “Facilities” links to learn
about our mission. Explore the “Business Opportunities” link to learn how your business or academic activity
can join us in solving our nation’s biggest challenges.
Everything we do is built on a quality and well-trained workforce. We are always seeking world-class talent.
Please follow the “Career Opportunities” link to learn how you might begin a rewarding career supporting
American warfighters.
Always being a step ahead starts at school. Please visit our “Outreach” link. It will take you to a page where
you can learn how we support the future of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education
in our local schools.
Thank you for visiting ARDEC on the internet.
John F. Hedderich III
Director, ARDEC