$8.2M contract for Bren-Tronics for military batteries

A U.S. Department of Defense agency has awarded an $8.2 million contract to a Commack-based manufacturer of charging systems for the military.

The contract calls for Bren-Tronics Inc. to make rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that would be used by the “war fighter, who would have boots on the ground,” said Kyle Roelofs, vice president of business development at the company.

“There’s over 100 different applications that these batteries power, including radios, robots, sensors,” he said.

Bren-Tronics will make the BB-2590/U batteries for the Army and Navy in a contract through the Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, according to a Department of Defense announcement. The DLA provides repair parts for weapons systems used on land or at sea.

Bren-Tronics must produce the batteries, which will number in the thousands, by Dec. 18.

The company has made more than 1 million of the batteries for various agencies and branches of the Department of Defense, starting with a U.S. Army installation in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, in 2004, Roelofs said.

The current BB-2590/U “is built tougher and has significant improvements” compared to its 2004 version, according to Bren-Tronics’ website.

Founded in 1973, the company has about 225 employees.

Rep. Thomas Suozzi (D-Glen Cove), who hosted an Aerospace and Defense Industry Supply Conference in December, toured Bren-Tronics on Tuesday.

“Many people think that the aerospace and defense industry has left Long Island, but there is actually a cluster of small and midsize companies, like Bren-Tronics, who supply the larger aerospace and defense manufacturers,” he said in a statement.

Those companies need to be promoted more so they can expand, he said.