Woodward to move Santa Clarita military actuation to Spartanburg and divest legacy lines

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ: WWD) said its board on September 15, 2026 approved a plan to transition production out of Santa Clarita, California — moving military fixed-wing and rotorcraft flight control actuation to a Spartanburg, South Carolina campus under construction while divesting legacy commercial rotorcraft, land systems, and business jet lines plus the California campus, with about $34 million to $47.5 million of pre-tax charges and roughly 400 roles affected.

Woodward is leaving Santa Clarita and splitting that site's work between a new Spartanburg campus and a planned sale of legacy lines — with roughly $34 million to $47.5 million of exit charges and about 400 roles affected.

Board plan and manufacturing split

On September 15, 2026, Woodward's board approved a plan to transition production out of the Santa Clarita, California, facility. Military fixed-wing and rotorcraft flight control actuation will move to the company's Spartanburg, South Carolina, aerospace manufacturing campus, which is still under construction. Separately, Woodward expects to divest certain legacy commercial rotorcraft, land systems, and business jet product lines primarily made in Santa Clarita, along with the campus itself. Those divested lines will not transfer to Spartanburg. The company expects the divestiture to close in fiscal year 2027.

Charges, cash, and timing

Woodward estimates cumulative pre-tax charges of about $34 million to $47.5 million: $23 million to $29 million of employee-related severance and benefits, $10 million to $16.5 million of anticipated contract termination costs, and $1 million to $2 million of other exit costs including asset write-offs and moving. Nearly all of the charges are expected to be cash; only about $1 million is expected to be non-cash. The company expects to cease Santa Clarita operations no later than December 2027, with charge recognition and related cash spending extending through that month.

Press release detail on jobs and Spartanburg

In a September 21, 2026 press release furnished under Item 7.01, Woodward said the decision is expected to affect about 400 roles at Santa Clarita through phased transitions. Spartanburg is expected to go online in the summer of 2027 and, as previously announced, will produce Airbus A350 spoiler actuation systems in addition to the transferred military actuation lines and other aerospace components. The press release also states Woodward has agreed to sell the smaller legacy product group and the Santa Clarita campus.

What this 8-K settles — and what it leaves open

Items 2.05, 7.01, and 9.01 lock the board date, the military-transfer versus legacy-divestiture split, the charge ranges, the cash versus non-cash split, the December 2027 cease-operations target, the ~400-role impact, and the summer 2027 Spartanburg online expectation. The filing does not name the buyer for the Santa Clarita campus and legacy lines, disclose purchase price or proceeds, or quantify expected savings or margin effects after the move.