established in 1889
USA factory opened in 1981
Columbia, South Carolina
Belgium history
- 1889 FN Herstal originated in the small city of Herstal, Belgium
– co-founded by the major arms makers of the Liège region - 1897 entered into relationship with John Moses Browning
- 1935 – 2017 Browning Hi-Power
FN USA history
- 1981 FN Manufacturing LLC plant in Columbia, South Carolina
– 200,000-square-foot
– military division of FN - responsible for the production of
– M16 rifles
– M249 light machine guns
– M240 machine guns
– M2 machine guns
– Mark-19 40 mm grenade launcher - 2014 FN America is the result of the merger of FN Manufacturing and FNH USA
- 2015 U.S. military to produce 120,000 M4 and M4A1 carbines
– $77-million - 2016 new retail store
– Two Notch Road in Columbia, SC - 2020 contract to manufacture 167,000 M4 and M4A1 carbines
– $119 million - FN America, LLC, is a U.S. subsidiary of FN Herstal, S.A.
Headquarters: McLean, Va
FN America, LLC
PO Box 9424
McLean, VA 22102
703-288-3500
fnamerica.com

About FN America
FN America, LLC is the U.S. subsidiary of Belgium’s FN Herstal, one of the oldest names in military small arms. FN’s American manufacturing began in 1981, when the Columbia, South Carolina, plant opened to produce the M240 machine gun under a U.S. Army contract. Over four decades the Richland County factory has turned out more than one million small arms for the Department of Defense, including M4 and M4A1 carbines, M16 rifles, M249 light machine guns, M240 machine guns and MK19 grenade machine guns. On the commercial side the company is known for the FN SCAR, the FN 15 rifle series and the FN 509 pistol.
The current company took shape in June 2014, when FN Manufacturing (the Columbia production arm) and FNH USA (the McLean, Virginia, sales and marketing arm founded in 1998) were consolidated as FN America, headquartered in McLean with production remaining in South Carolina. In December 2014 the Army awarded FN America a contract worth up to $84.6 million for M240 B, C, D and H machine guns. In October 2023 the company broke ground on a second South Carolina facility, a planned 100,000-square-foot plant in Liberty, Pickens County, with a $33 million investment and 176 new jobs.
Key Facts
- 1981: Columbia, South Carolina, plant opens to build the M240 for the U.S. Army
- 1998: FNH USA established in McLean, Virginia, for sales and marketing
- June 2014: FN Manufacturing and FNH USA consolidate as FN America, LLC
- December 2014: Army contract worth up to $84.6 million for M240 machine guns
- October 2023: Ground broken on a second plant in Liberty, South Carolina

Sources
- FN Breaks Ground On Second South Carolina Factory (American Rifleman)
- FN Manufacturing and FNH USA to Consolidate (The Firearm Blog)
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