Alliant expanding

Alliant Techsystems' Clearfield facility is expected to add 120 high-paying technical jobs as it adds composite fiber placement machines to meet the needs of the Air Force's F-35 program.

The company on Tuesday broke ground on the first Title III machine in Clearfield. The Title III program is designed to advance domestic production capabilities for a range of technologies to strengthen national security by providing financial incentives to companies to invest in production capabilities and resources.

ATK has 650 employees at the Freeport Center that produce composite structures for the aerospace and defense industries — specifically, lightweight structures for aircraft and launch vehicles. The company will install six fiber placement machines with the help of Title III funding, bringing its total to nine.