John Maconi, chief operating officer of the Greystone Corp., describes the training ammunition that Greystone has a hand in manufacturing. The machined metal casings on the table are being readied for the next step.

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

LINCOLN — A high-precision machining and plating company that formerly did most of its work for the automotive industry has been awarded a three-year contract to manufacture elements for 40mm training ammunition that explodes with color.

The Mk281 ammunition fits high-velocity machine guns and rocket launchers used by the Marines and Special Forces.

It’s all part of a new product category known as “green ammunition,” which is designed to be environmentally friendly to everyone — unless, of course, you take a direct hit.

John Maconi, chief operating officer for Greystone Corp., said the new contract to produce the steel projectile bodies for the ammunition is partially underwritten by a $500,000 loan from the Rhode Island Economic Development Commission.

In addition to the work for the Department of Defense, the 77-year-old company also manufactures components for the nuclear, solar-power and aerospace industries, also supported by the EDC loan.

Greystone moved away from automotive work — for example, the company makes charge holders to help air bags explosively inflate in a collision — because of problems in that industry.

“It’s all because of the automotive downturn,” said Maconi. “Automotive is rough right now. We’ve been in business since 1932 and we have three projects of this magnitude that will transform us from automotive to defense, solar and nuclear. And we’re a major supplier to the aerospace industry.”

“We went into this for survival,” he said.

The privately held company employs 235 people at its facilities in Lincoln, North Providence and Toano, Va. The ammunition production is being done in Rhode Island, where 185 people work. The company is owned by Everett H. Fernald Jr. and David E. Lippy. Maconi declined to disclose annual revenue.

Greystone doesn’t make the whole shell. It is a subcontractor for American Rheinmetall Munitions Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of German-based Rheinmetall Defense.

What comes off the Greystone assembly lines is a steel cylinder that is machined so a gunpowder charge can be attached to the back. Once fired, the gunpowder sends the projectile on its way.

The middle of the cylinder has a recessed area that is filled with plastic, which gives the internal grooves of the gun barrel something to grip as the shell is fired. The grooves make it spin rapidly, improving accuracy.

Attached to the head of the cylinder is a nose cone containing two compartments. Once fired, the glass barrier separating the compartments shatters, allowing the chemicals inside to mix. The result is a mixture that begins to fluoresce, just as snapping a glow stick allows it to give off light.

Once the projectile hits its target, the mixture splatters. In the daytime it shows up as bright orange. At night, it gives off light that can be seen only with night-vision goggles.

The impact marking provides the visual feedback that troops need to hone their aim.

“They’re very visible as to what they’ve hit and where they’ve gone,” said Maconi.

The training ammunition can be distinguished from real ammo by its bright blue plastic nose caps. Greystone does not make live shells, although one of the training projectiles could kill you if you took a direct hit.

The shells are regarded as “green” because they are more environmentally friendly.

One reason, Maconi said, is that toxic chemicals have been replaced by biodegradable plastic, glass and other inert materials in the manufacture of the shells.

In addition, because the projectiles contain fluorescent chemical instead of gunpowder, there’s no safety hazard if a shell doesn’t explode on contact.

And old-fashioned training ammunition has lots of duds.

Up to 8 percent fail to explode, which means the military has to spend millions of dollars trying to safely collect the unexploded shells.

Because the Mk281 projectiles, once fired, don’t have any explosive in them, that’s not a problem.

gemery@projo.com