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NEW DELHI, November 17, 2006 – Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT], the world’s premier defense contractor, is conducting follow up activities in India in conjunction with the two-day supplier conference it conducted in Bangalore in August.
Current activities include site surveys to validate Indian manufacturing and quality capabilities in preparation for eventually placing work with Indian companies.
Over 50 Indian companies were represented at the supplier conference and more than 20 have been visited or are scheduled to be visited by Lockheed Martin site survey teams before the end of the year. Potentially viable companies have been identified in locations including Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kerala and New Delhi.
Lockheed Martin’s objective is to promote India capabilities to match current needs for airframe parts, major aircraft systems, engineering services and Integrated Logistics activities required to support the corporation’s defense products.
“These activities are the next step in the process of developing long term business relationships between Lockheed Martin and the Indian supply chain,” said Orville Prins, vice president for Business Development-India at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics.
Robert J. Stevens, Lockheed Martin’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, visited India the week of Nov. 6 and met with a number of government, industry and military officials. Ralph D. Heath, president of the corporation’s Aeronautics business area, visited India during October.
Military aircraft produced by Lockheed Martin include the F-16 multi-role fighter, F-35 Lightning II, C-130J Super Hercules transport and P-3 maritime surveillance aircraft. The company also provides a wide variety of other goods and services for use by governments, ranging from air traffic management systems to postal sorting.
Lockheed Martin has a long and successful record of offset or counter-trade participation, having accomplished projects valued at more than $40 billion (U.S.) in 37 nations. More than 40 companies in a dozen different nations have produced parts for the F-16 aircraft, and nearly 1,000 F-16s have been delivered from manufacturing facilities in Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey and South Korea.
Lockheed Martin offset programs have provided customer nations with technology transfer and participation in the development of new aircraft and systems, in addition to build-to-print component manufacturing. For example, Japan’s F-2 fighter and Korea’s new T-50 trainer both resulted from joint development projects established with Lockheed Martin.
Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 140,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2005 sales of $37.2 billion.
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