Alliant Techsystems, Inc., (ATK) recently announced that it has received more than $213 million in orders for small-caliber ammunition.

The orders came under an existing contract with the U.S. Army Contracting Command in Rock Island, Illinois. They include a mix of 5.56 mm, 7.62 mm, and .50-caliber ammunition-which will be produced by ATK at its plant in Independence, Missouri. Since ATK began operating the plant in 2000, it has produced more than 10 billion rounds of ammunition.

In a separate deal, ATK was awarded a $71 million contract from the Department of Defense to provide illuminating flares to support military efforts, primarily by the U.S. Air Force.

Under the terms of the contract, ATK will produce and deliver the flares for three years, with the first deliveries beginning in 2011. The flares are deployed by aircrafts to illuminate battlefield operations, such as search-and-rescue missions, the company said. Some of the flares provide a visible illumination, while others create infrared energy.

“These flares are important tools in our military's defense,” Mark Messick, vice president and general manager of advanced systems for ATK's aerospace systems group, said in a statement. “ATK continually updates the illuminating flares we produce to make them safer, more effective, and more reliable.”

ATK announced last month that it had received a $67 million contract to produce components for a missile warning system and a $10 million order to deliver non-standard ammunition to Afghanistan.

ATK is among Minnesota's 20-largest public companies based on its fiscal 2009 revenue, which totaled $4.6 billion. The company reported fiscal 2010 revenue of $4.8 billion.