Thanks to an infusion of federal funds, Mack Defense will continue producing heavy dump trucks in Allentown.
U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie joined company officials and workers Friday at the Mack Experience Center next to Queen City Airport to announce the $47 million defense appropriation into the program that produces the M917A3 heavy dump truck for the U.S. Army.
The funding will secure the production of 87 additional trucks, extending operations at the facility through at least the end of 2027. Mack Defense has built more than 625 M917A3 HDTs to date. It is part of the five-year contract awarded in June 2025 to Mack Defense for up to 450 trucks, with a total contract value of up to $221.8 million.
The HDT is based on the commercially available Mack Granite heavy duty truck and plays a vital role in construction and upkeep of infrastructure assets, including airfields, roadways, landing strips, supply facilities and motor pools. They are equipped with heavier-duty rear axles, all-wheel drive, increased suspension ride height and other ruggedized features to meet the unique requirements of the U.S. military.
Mack Defense President David Hartzell said about 100 skilled technicians and professionals assemble the trucks in conjunction with Mack Trucks’ Lehigh Valley Operations plant in Lower Macungie Township. He credited Mackenzie for helping get Mack through the appropriations process.
“Heavy dump trucks are a little bit lower in priority,” Hartzell said. “So it didn’t get a full level of funding. We went to our congressional leads and they helped us go in front of the House Armed Services committees and request additional funding to be put into the program.”
Mackenzie, R-7th District, said the current priority for the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee is restocking and resupplying ammunition, but credited chairman Rep. Ken Calvert, R-California, for helping with the funding and not letting the contract lapse.
U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie speaks in front of Mack Defense’s Heavy Dump Trucks Friday, June 19, 2026, at the Mack Experience Center in Allentown. Mack Defense has received a $47 million defense contract to produce HDTs for the U.S. Army through the end of 2027. The extension will help preserve 100 jobs at the plant next to Queen City Airport. (April Gamiz/The Morning Call)
“When you have a program like this,” Mackenzie said, “it’s the type of thing in any company, any organization, the military included … Those support components are maybe not top of mind forever.
“If you let this lapse at the end of the most recent contract, all of a sudden, that means that an assembly line is going to be shut down. People are going to be laid off, restarting that kind of work becomes much harder down the road.”
Mackenzie said that $47 million may not seem like a lot in a $1 trillion budget, but “every dollar is scrutinized nowadays.”
Tim Hertzog, a representative from United Auto Workers Local 677, which represents Mack workers, said that every job at the facility supports up to eight additional jobs across the Lehigh Valley.
Manufacturing from Mack and others contributes about $8.9 billion into the region’s $57.3 billion gross domestic product, according to the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp.
See full article on the Morning Call Here – https://www.mcall.com/2026/06/19/mack-trucks-defense-funding-allentown-plant
Mack Defense, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mack Trucks, is responsible for the sale of heavy-duty trucks to federal- and ministerial-level customers globally. For more information, please visit mackdefense.org.
Mack Defense, LLC, is part of the Volvo Group, which is driving prosperity through transport solutions by offering trucks, buses, construction equipment, power solutions for marine and industrial applications, financing and services that increase customer uptime and productivity. Founded in 1927, the Volvo Group is committed to shaping the future landscape of sustainable transport and infrastructure solutions. The Volvo Group is headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden, employs about 100,000 people and serves customers in more than 190 markets. In 2022, net sales amounted to about $47 billion. Volvo shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. For more information, please visit www.volvogroup.com.
This effort was sponsored by the U.S. Government under Other Transaction Authority number W15QKN-17-9-1025 with the National Advanced Mobility Consortium, Inc. (NAMC). Reference herein to any specific commercial company, product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or the Department of the Army (DA). The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government, the DA, or the National Advanced Mobility Consortium, Inc., and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. For more information, please visit www.namcconsortium.org.