A trio of Lockheed Martin Mission Systems federal government software systems are among the best of 2001, according to CrossTalk magazine. In its January issue, CrossTalk names its "Top 5 U.S. Government Quality Software Projects" plus eleven finalists. Of the sixteen projects honored, three of them -- the Census Bureau's Data Capture System 2000 (DCS2000), the U.S. Army's All Source Analysis System (ASAS) and the U.S. Air Force's Command and Control Mainframe System (CCMS) -- were developed by Mission Systems.

Of the 87 programs nominated for the award, DCS2000, the system that processed more than 148 million Census forms with record-breaking speed and accuracy, was chosen as one of the top five projects of the year. The project represented the first time in history that the Census Bureau had employed a system to digitally read and record handwritten data from Census forms, and the first time the Bureau had enlisted a contractor to handle the processing. The DCS2000 team worked closely with the Bureau to process 1.5 billion pages of information quickly, accurately, and ahead of Constitutionally-mandated Census deadlines.

ASAS, the Army's premier intelligence-gathering and analysis system, was recognized as a finalist in the competition. A major component of the Army Battle Command System, ASAS is currently in use by Army intelligence officers to support mission-critical objectives. In the past 18 months the ASAS team has made 22 contract deliveries on or ahead of schedule.

Also recognized as a finalist was CCMS, a highly successful Air Force satellite tracking and control system. The CCMS team delivered 25 products in just 18 months to ensure the successful operation of more than a dozen satellite control centers. Between November 2000 and October 2001, the system made some 90,000 satellite contacts with a 99.98 percent success rate.

"What sets these programs apart is the outstanding partnership between the customer and the development team. Together they were able to build systems that deliver top-quality performance and total customer satisfaction," said Terry Drabant, president of Lockheed Martin Mission Systems. "This is a great honor, and one that validates our commitment to the highest standards of software quality and process improvement. We're proud to share that honor with our customers."

Sponsored by the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Science and Technology, the competition judged each project according to its value to the customer, its contribution to technological innovation, and overall program performance. A panel of engineering experts from the Department of Defense, the software industry and academia reviewed the entries and selected the winners. CrossTalk, the journal of defense software engineering, is published by the Air Force's Software Technology Support Center. CrossTalk is available online at http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/index.asp .

Mission Systems has attained some of the highest ratings for quality and process improvement in the world. The company achieved a Level 5, the highest rating possible, in the Carnegie Mellon Systems Engineering Institute (SEI)(TM) Capability Maturity Model (CMM) for Software. An ISO 9001 registered company, Mission Systems has earned a Level 3 rating in the Systems Engineering Capability Model, and the People CMM(TM).

As the Corporation's lead enterprise for Information Superiority, Lockheed Martin Mission Systems serves customers including U.S. and international defense and civil government agencies. Mission Systems employs approximately 2,500 at primary facilities in Gaithersburg, Colorado Springs, Colo., Santa Maria, Calif., and is a business unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation.

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.

For additional information on Lockheed Martin Mission Systems visit: http://www.lockheedmartin.com/missionsystems

For additional information on Lockheed Martin Corporation visit: http://www.lockheedmartin.com/

  (TM) CMM is a trademark of Carnegie Mellon University.

                  MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT -  Click Here
             http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X54952734

SOURCE: Lockheed Martin Mission Systems