Ralph G. Tourino, Lockheed Martin vice president for Space Support Systems, has been selected to receive a prestigious award as one of the 50 Most Important Hispanics in Technology and Business by the editors of Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology magazine.

Honorees were chosen for their outstanding work in the field of technology and their leadership of the institutions where they work. This list includes many of the nation's highest-achieving Hispanic executives, managers and researchers in industry, academia and government. They have demonstrated leadership on a broad front, not only in the workplace, but in their communities.

Tourino joined Lockheed Martin nine years ago and is based in Santa Maria. His business area focuses on developing modern technology for launch range operations at Vandenberg and Cape Canaveral Air Force bases and other launch range locations. He retired as a major general from the U.S. Air Force after a distinguished 30-year career, principally in system acquisition.

"We're very proud to have Ralph on our team. He is an exceptional leader within his community and in the industry. Ralph understands how to empower his team to perform at their best and has a dedicated focus on understanding the customer's needs and delivering critical solutions," stated John Mengucci, Lockheed Martin vice president of Space-Ground Integration Systems. "We congratulate Ralph on this exceptional achievement."

The award dinner will be held Sept. 17 in Nashville, Tenn., at a career development and employee recognition event for minorities in the areas of research and technology.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 130,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2003 sales of $31.8 billion.

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SOURCE: Lockheed Martin