Bushmaster has moved all of its production to Remington’s factory in Ilion, NY. This comes as no surprise to anyone in the industry. For all practical purposes Bushmaster is a Remington brand rather than a separate company. This is neither a good or bad thing, it is simply the way it is. The Freedom Group is going public and they need to cut costs to make the company attractive to investors.

From the press release …

Freedom Group, Inc. (“The Company”), the world’s leading innovator, designer, manufacturer, and marketer of firearms, ammunition, and related products for the hunting, shooting sports, law enforcement, and military markets announced today a manufacturing relocation of the Bushmaster Firearms International manufacturing facility located in Windham, Maine to Ilion, New York. The Company expects to create 40-50 new positions at the Ilion, New York facility as a result of the relocation.

The Bushmaster brand and products remain key strategic assets within the Freedom Group portfolio. The manufacturing relocation will have no impact on customers or the existing supply base.

“As competition in today’s global marketplace remains intense, consolidation of our manufacturing processes and operating systems allow us to provide Bushmaster customers with the highest quality products while maintaining a competitive position in the marketplace,” said John Trull, Freedom Group’s Vice President – Product Management & Marketing, Firearms. “We are committed to the Bushmaster brand, its core product offerings and bringing innovative new Bushmaster firearms to our customers.”

The Freedom Group Family of companies.

What industry insiders are wondering is how long DPMS Panther Arms, the Freedom Group’s other AR-15 manufacturer, will remain separate from Remington.