Marion Defense has been building a diverse line of truck bodies for the US Military and our Allies for over three decades.  With proven platforms like the Oshkosh Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT) deployed globally, Marion has earned a reputation for delivering rugged and innovative vehicle components.

“We have the capabilities to build exactly to your written spec, or we can help you design and build a body to meet a new requirement,” said Larry Czarnecki, Manager of Engineering at Marion.  “We’ve built more than 25 different types of defense bodies for Oshkosh, BAE Systems, Mack Defense and Navistar Defense.”  Some programs are steady production line contracts for hundreds of bodies like Oshkosh’s HEMTT or Navistar’s General Troop Transport (GTT) while others are limited specialty runs. 

“We recently completed 11 bodies for Navistar Defense that were sold to Peru.” said Czarnecki, “One was a unique mobile workshop for remote vehicle repairs that included a generator, welder, lathe, drill press and other tools.  We outfitted the entire body with all the equipment, power requirements and storage systems.”  Many builders would not have been willing to tackle such a short run, but Marion has a 113 year history of building specialized vehicles and custom fire apparatus.  “We are comfortable looking at any spec, we are not going to be scared away by the unusual or unfamiliar,” Czarnecki continued.

In addition to new body manufacturing, Marion also performs vehicle resets on used and damaged bodies.  As part of complete teardowns by the OEM, Marion will receive truck bodies, disassemble them, and sandblast to remove paint.  The pieces will then be fully inspected, and repaired or replaced to meet the OEM spec.  Parts will be repainted and returned to the OEM for reattachment to the chassis.  This extends the service of the vehicle while saving taxpayer dollars.

Marion employs more than 100 American Welding Society (AWS) Qualified welders led by a Certified Welding Inspector.  Their contributions, along with the rest of the design and build team has recently earned Marion the Navistar Diamond Supplier Award. 

Given annually to an elite group of suppliers, the Diamond Supplier Award recognizes the top half of one percent of Navistar’s global supplier network.  Marion’s ability to go above and beyond Navistar’s expectations for quality, support, response time and production flexibility were key factors in earning this prestigious award.  “The team at Marion is proud of what we provide our customers like Navistar.  We will continue our 30+ year history supporting our US Warfighters and our Allies around the world,” said Curtis Ignacio, President & CEO at Marion.