Lockheed Martin , along with a host of participating sponsors, is organizing a major Information Technology conference for communities in the mid-Columbia region of Washington State on Wednesday, April 18.

The Tri-Cities of Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick, Wash., have developed a growing technology industry whose influence is felt throughout the region. Lockheed Martin, as part of its commitment to enhance IT education and training in the local community, has assembled speakers from respected industry analyst organizations as the Gartner and Giga Information groups and from senior representatives from industry, including Microsoft and Cisco, to help the region prepare for the future.

Subjects will cover a variety of topical Information Technology areas as knowledge management, cyber security, and wireless solutions. Featured as speakers also will be leading technologists from several Lockheed Martin operating companies, including Exostar, Enterprise Information Systems and Sandia National Laboratories.

Keynote speaker for the luncheon will be Keith Klein, Manager of the Department of Energy's Richland Operations Office and Kathy Wilcox, President and CEO of the Washington Software Alliance.

The event will be held at the Pasco DoubleTree Hotel from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. to include a host of industry exhibits and a luncheon. A reception and dinner, sponsored by the Tri-Cities' economic development company, TRIDEC, will follow from 5 to 8 p.m.

Joining Lockheed Martin as co-sponsors of Information Technology Day are the Tri-City Herald and TRIDEC in partnership with Columbia Basin College, Washington State University-Tri Cities, and the Washington Software Alliance.

Darrell Graddy, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Services, Inc., at the Department of Energy's Hanford site, called the event "a shot in the arm for IT education and economic development in the region. This is the biggest Information Technology event ever held in the Tri-Cities. The time is right for a conference of this magnitude and we have great expectations for this event and for the future of the IT industry in the mid- Columbia region."

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global enterprise principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced-technology systems, products and services. The Corporation's core businesses are systems integration, space, aeronautics, and technology services. Information Support Services, parent organization of Russell's organization at Hanford, is a business unit of Lockheed Martin providing information technology business systems, managed services and infrastructure solutions to major government agencies.

SOURCE: Lockheed Martin Information Support Services