RaiderWerx innovation cell opens on Ellsworth AFB

BOX ELDER, S.D. (KOTA) - The U.S. Air Force has always been on the cutting edge of technological innovation, and now Ellsworth Air Force base is looking to expand on that forward-thinking attitude.

Ellsworth Air Force Base opened a new part of their campus Friday dedicated to promoting innovative thinking among its airmen. The RaiderWerx cell provides tools like computers, 3-D printers, and even a podcast studio to develop new ideas for the branch.

Lorie Vega, deputy mission support group director, said that new ideas are key to the Air Force’s success.

“We need to continue to innovate to find new solutions,” Vega said. “We can’t wait, because the solutions of yesterday won’t work today, and the best solutions come from our airmen who are doing the actual work on the ground.”

Director of Innovation Timothy Kenney said that innovative thinking is what made the Air Force a military branch in the first place, and carrying on that tradition is a step Ellsworth needs to take.

“I see it in the eyes of all our airmen,” Kenney said. “They all come in and want to make big changes. They want to leave their mark. So, we’re just here to help that.”

With the upcoming addition of the B-21 bomber, an Ellsworth Air Force Base spokesman says accelerating change is the base’s main priority.