EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Oct. 20, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) today presented "2004 Supplier of the Year" awards to 12 U.S. companies that have consistently produced and delivered top quality parts and services for the company's Integrated Systems sector during the past year. The awards were presented at a special suppliers luncheon held in Manhattan Beach, Calif.
The honored companies, selected from more than 1100 suppliers to the company's Integrated Systems sector, provide the sector with commodities that range from materials used in the production of advanced technology aircraft systems such as avionics components, composites and sheet metal, to more "indirect" support such as janitorial services. The top suppliers hail from all parts of the country, including Southern California, Texas, Florida, Maryland, New York and Idaho.
"The Integrated Systems sector developed its Supplier of the Year Award program to recognize and reward the critical role that our suppliers play in helping us produce and deliver affordable, high performance products that protect and ensure mission success for the men and women of the U.S. armed services," said Scott J. Seymour, Northrop Grumman corporate vice president and president of the Integrated Systems sector. "We're counting on their active participation in the refinement of our procurement and production processes to ensure we continue to exceed the expectations of our U.S. and international customers."
Initiated in 2004, Integrated Systems' Suppliers of the Year award program is an outgrowth of the company's strategic sourcing initiative, an effort started in summer 2003 to build stronger long-term relationships between the company and its suppliers. Under this initiative, every supplier is "graded" quarterly on parameters such as quality, on-time delivery and participation in affordability initiatives. To be considered for a Supplier of the Year award, a company must demonstrate consistent superior performance in delivering products and services to Northrop Grumman.
"We're looking for companies who provide strategic value to the company through high quality products, on-time delivery and a general responsiveness to our cost, schedule, and quality requirements," explains Bob Lewis, director of the Northrop Grumman strategic sourcing teams that selected the Suppliers of the Year. "We're also looking for suppliers who can support us across multiple business areas."
It's not uncommon, he added, for one supplier to provide parts for the E-2C airborne early warning aircraft program in Bethpage, N.Y., the F/A-18 aircraft program in El Segundo, Calif. and the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle program in San Diego.
According to Lewis, the company is also encouraging its suppliers to invest in the machine tools, software and manufacturing processes that raise quality, increase efficiency and lower the overall cost of doing business.
"We view these strategic sourcing relationships as a real win-win opportunity for the company and its suppliers," he adds. "The more consistent and efficient our suppliers become at producing their products, the more successful they can become at expanding their business opportunities with Northrop Grumman. The more value they can bring to our production process, the better able we are to deliver high quality, high performance products to our customers at a competitive price. It's a team effort."
Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems is a premier aerospace and defense systems integration organization. Headquartered in El Segundo, Calif., it designs, develops, produces and supports network-enabled integrated systems and subsystems optimized for use in networks. For its government and civil customers worldwide, Integrated Systems delivers best-value solutions, products and services that support military and homeland defense missions in the areas of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; space access; battle management command and control; and integrated strike warfare.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems' 2004 "Suppliers of the Year" include:
Hurlen Corporation Santa Fe Springs, Calif. Data Laser Imaging, LLC Carson, Calif. Roc-Aire Corporation South El Monte, Calif. Parker Aerospace, Air & Fuel Division Irvine, Calif. Superior Building Services, Inc. Orlando, Fla. Aircraft Tubular Components Melbourne, Fla. Cygnus, Inc. Ponderay, Idaho Harvard Custom Manufacturing, Inc. Salisbury, Md. Smiths Aerospace Systems, Grand Rapids, Mich. Electronic Systems Air Industries Machining Corp. Bay Shore, N.Y. Cytec Engineered Materials, Inc. Greenville, Tex. Honeywell HPG Roanoke, Tex.