The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development CommandChemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC) is the primary research and development resource inside the Department of Defense for non-medical chemical and biological defense.[1] As a major organization in the CB defense community, the CBC supports all phases of the acquisition life-cycle ― from basic and applied research through technology development, engineering design, equipment evaluation, product support, sustainment, field operations, and demilitarization ― to address its customers’ requirements.[2]
The center's mission is to provide innovative chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) defense capabilities to enable the joint warfighters' superiority on the battlefield, and interagency defense of the United States.
History
As an organizational grandchild of the original Edgewood Arsenal, DEVCOM CBC traces its lineage back over a century to 1917, when President Woodrow Wilson established the site to be the location of the first chemical shell filling plant in the United States. Since that time, the center has expanded its mission to include biological materials.[2][3]
Designations
DEVCOM CBC's name has changed many times over the past century. The name changes were:[citation needed][3]
1918 – Originally designated the Edgewood Arsenal by the War Department
1942 – Renamed to Chemical Warfare Center at Edgewood Arsenal
1946 – Renamed to Army Chemical Center at Edgewood Arsenal, concurrently with the formation of the Army Chemical Corps
1963 – Name returns to Edgewood Arsenal (both command and installation)
1977 – Edgewood Arsenal (command) was disestablished, and the Chemical Systems Laboratory (CSL) was established under the newly formed Armament Research and Development Command (ARRADCOM)
1983 – CSL redesignated as Chemical Research and Development Center (CRDC), under the new Armament, Munitions and Chemical Command (AMCCOM)
1986 – CRDC redesignated as Chemical Research, Development and Engineering Center (CRDEC)
1992 – CRDEC reorganized, forming the Edgewood Research, Development and Engineering Center (ERDEC), under the Chemical and Biological Defense Agency (CBDA)
1998 – ERDEC redesignated as Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC), under newly formed Soldier and Biological Chemical Command (SBCCOM)
DEVCOM CBC works with industry to collaborate on applied research, product development, and testing. DEVCOM CBC offers its partner companies the benefits of its intellectual property portfolio, science and engineering expertise, and its specialty chemical biological research and testing infrastructure. Mechanisms for collaborative research, development, and commercial production include: cooperative research and development agreements (CRADAs), letters of intent (LOIs), material transfer agreements (MTAs), patent license agreements (PLAs), technology support agreements (TSAs), plus memos of agreement and memos of understanding (MOAs and MOUs).[6][7]
DEVCOM also possesses a chemical munitions field operations capability. It consists of field-deployable scientists, engineers, technicians, and explosives specialists with chemical/biological agent surety expertise plus unique capabilities for on-site destruction of agents. Finally, DEVCOM CBC develops smoke and obscurants technology, including its synthesis, transport, and dispersion.
↑"About Us | DEVCOM CBC website". cbc.devcom.army.mil. Archived from the original on 23 September 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2025. We [are] located at four different sites in the United States: Edgewood Area of Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., Pine Bluff, Ark., Rock Island, Ill., and Dugway Proving Ground, Utah.
↑"Solutions | 2014 Annual Report"(PDF). army.mil. Archived(PDF) from the original on 25 January 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2025. ECBC has more than $1.8 billion in facilities and equipment, and more than 1.2 million square feet of laboratories and test chambers.
↑"2002 ECBC Web Brochure"(PDF). www.govinfo.gov. p.7. Archived(PDF) from the original on 13 August 2025. Retrieved 13 August 2025. There are several ways in which commercial industry and non-Department of Defense organizations can partner with ECBC. These include: (___enter___); Patent Licensing Agreements (PLA) (___enter___); Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA) (___enter___); Test Services Agreements (TSA) (___enter___); Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) (___enter___); Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) (___enter___); Support Agreement (Interagency Agreement)
