It's because of the presence of established defense contractor L-3 Communications as well as dozens of upstart operations in a business incubator.
In the past six years, some 700 jobs, most technical in nature, have been added.
During that time, the upstart firms in one business incubator have landed more than $100 million in military contracts.
Projects include preparing a system to analyze information about ships spotted by cameras off the coast of the United States, and teaching robots to work together.