REDONDO BEACH, Calif., April 21, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) honored four suppliers with the first annual National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Supplier Awards last month. The suppliers honored were Raytheon Company, ITT, AT&T, and Technology Advancement Inc.
Northrop Grumman's Space Technology sector established the awards program to recognize suppliers who have demonstrated outstanding performance and have collaborated in working towards NPOESS' mission success. As the prime contractor for NPOESS, Northrop Grumman is leading a team of software, sensor, data processing, and spacecraft suppliers that is developing the nation's next generation environmental monitoring satellite system.
"Suppliers are critically important to the success of NPOESS," said Fred Ricker, Northrop Grumman vice president and NPOESS program director. "More than 70 percent of this program's work is being performed by suppliers. We established the awards as a part of a comprehensive incentive plan to motivate our suppliers to help us achieve overall mission success. We highly value each and every supplier, and intend to give each of them a chance to share in the NPOESS' success."
Suppliers were honored for the following achievements:
-- Raytheon. Raytheon closely collaborated with Northrop Grumman on
system-wide topics and made significant progress on the ground-
segment software-development work, with excellent cost
containment and schedule adherence, subsequently ensuring the
ground segments will be ready when the NPOESS Preparatory
Project satellite is launched in 2006.
-- ITT. ITT overcame technical challenges in the development of the
Cross-track Infrared Sensor (CrIS) and demonstrated excellent
cost containment and schedule adherence. ITT has routinely
developed innovative approaches for effectively resolving key
issues for both their sensor and the program at large.
-- AT&T. AT&T demonstrated outstanding system engineering and
security engineering support during planning for the
implementation of a new security standard. AT&T's initiative
and leadership helped to develop a response and efficient
implementation approach.
-- Technology Advancement, Inc. Technology Advancement identified
and resolved many cross-system operations and support issues, and
also provided excellent leadership when NPOESS' schedule was re-
planned last year.
Northrop Grumman's principal teammate and subcontractor, Raytheon, also recognized Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) as an outstanding supplier of the year. KSAT is a Norwegian company providing space-to-ground link services and ground fiber interconnection services in support of the NPOESS command, control and communications segment. KSAT was rewarded for excellent performance in the installation of a ground station antenna system and fiber interconnection to support early mission data retrieval and dissemination.
Scheduled for launch in 2011, NPOESS merges existing military and civilian satellite systems to form a single cost-effective national program. Advanced sensors aboard the spacecraft will help civilian forecasters reduce potential damage to life and property from severe weather conditions; will help the military to anticipate and exploit atmospheric conditions in operations planning; and will provide continuous, long-term climate data for scientific environmental assessment.
Northrop Grumman Space Technology, based in Redondo Beach, Calif., develops a broad range of systems at the leading edge of space, defense and electronics technology. The sector creates products for U.S. military and civilian customers that contribute significantly to the nation's security and leadership in science and technology.
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