INDIANTOWN, Fla. — A new ammunition manufacturing facility in Indiantown is bringing additional manufacturing activity and planned job growth to Martin County as the Treasure Coast continues to contend with unemployment rates above the statewide average.
Ikonick Energetics recently expanded its operations into Indiantown, opening a primer manufacturing facility that is part of the company’s broader ammunition production operation in Martin County.
Richard Rhatigan, vice president of law enforcement and government sales at Ikonick USA, said the facility has significant production capacity.
“At full capacity you're looking at a billion primers per year,” said Rhatigan.
Primers are a small part of the larger puzzle in manufacturing ammunition.
“It is one of the four components that go into building ammunition, so the primer actually ignites the powder which is incased within the brass,” said Rhatigan.
While cameras were not permitted inside the primer manufacturing facility, Ikonick provided a look at its ammunition manufacturing operation in Stuart.
At the Stuart facility, workers combine the primer, brass casing and projectile to produce finished ammunition.
With the addition of the Indiantown facility, the company says about 75% of each piece of ammunition is now produced in Martin County.
Ikonick also plans to hire over 100 additional employees across its two locations. The positions are expected to include both entry-level and more specialized manufacturing jobs.
“When you talk about American manufacturing what that really means is, the people who work in our facilities, they live in our community,” said Rhatigan.
The company says the expansion reflects the potential for additional manufacturing growth in the area.
“The opportunity for expansion is here and it is part of supporting the community in Martin County,” said Rhatigan.
The Indiantown Chamber of Commerce said the new facility represents a significant investment in advanced manufacturing for the region.
The company also says its Martin County operations will help meet ammunition needs for law enforcement training.
“We can support the state and local law enforcement training needs with our ammo with our facility in Stuart and here in Indiantown,” said Rhatigan.
The expansion comes as Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties report unemployment rates above the statewide average, according to the latest unemployment data.
For Indiantown, the facility represents another addition to the community’s manufacturing sector and could provide new employment opportunities as Ikonick continues to expand its operations.
Portions of this story were assisted by artificial intelligence tools and reviewed by a WPTV journalists to ensure accuracy, clarity, and adherence to editorial standards.
