The Space Force has picked Lockheed Martin for a $514 million contract to build two more GPS III Follow-on satellites.

With the new contract, Lockheed Martin will build a total of 14 GPS IIIF satellites at its space division headquarters and manufacturing facility in Littleton, the company announced Monday.

In 2018, the Air Force selected the company to build up to 22 GPS III satellites. The announcement six years predates the foundation of the Space Force, which now operates the constellation from Schriever Space Force Base.

The GPS constellation is a network of 24 active and seven reserve satellites orbiting more than 12,000 miles above Earth. Though operated by the Space Force and originally a military program launched in 1978, GPS has been used by civilians for more than 30 years, revolutionizing life. It gives financial institutions the power to prevent fraud in real time and provides farmers with better tools for irrigation and harvesting, The Gazette reported previously.

“The GPS constellation underpins banking transactions, telecommunications networks, emergency‑response services, and everyday navigation,” Lockheed said in a news release. “The new GPS IIIF satellites broadcast all civil signals … at greater accuracy and reliability.”

The satellites carry atomic clocks that provide precise timing across the world, necessary for critical infrastructure, such as the electrical grid. The constellation’s role in infrastructure means 6 billion people likely rely on GPS, according to past coverage.

But the constellation is aging. The oldest satellite is approaching 30 years and as technology has developed, so too have methods of disrupting GPS signals. This endangers civilians and military personnel alike.

“Modernizing the constellation with highly resilient, next-generation space vehicles ensures warfighters have access to the GPS capabilities they require for their missions,” said Christina Mancinelli, vice president of global communications and navigation at Lockheed Martin. “We continue to invest in advanced technology, facilities and the people who are the driving force in the production of this spacecraft that help our military secure peace.”

The first GPS IIIF satellite is slated to be launched as early as 2028, according to Space Systems Command, the acquisitions arm of the branch.