Lockheed Martin's Undersea Systems business, in Manassas, VA, and M & M Technical Services, Inc., of Woodbridge, VA, have been named joint-recipients of the Department of Defense Mentor-Protege Program's 2006 Nunn-Perry Award.

The Mentor-Protege Program encourages large defense contractors to develop the technical capabilities of small, disadvantaged businesses and to enable organizations employing the severely disabled to compete more effectively for defense-related work. The Nunn-Perry Award, honoring former U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn and former Secretary of Defense William Perry, recognizes outstanding mentor-protege teams which excel in technical developments and cost efficiencies, as well as increase business opportunities for small, disadvantaged firms.

Lockheed Martin and M & M Technical Services began their Mentor-Protege relationship in 2003. M & M Technical Services is a small business that provides a variety of information systems and engineering services.

"We're deeply honored to have been selected to receive such a prestigious award," said John O'Neill, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin's Undersea Systems business. "It is recognition from the Department of Defense that our Undersea Systems business is working very effectively with small businesses."

"Our mentoring partnership with M & M has been a mutually rewarding relationship and a great benefit to both of us," said Dr. Bill Munslow, a program manager at Undersea Systems, who accepted the award at the DoD Mentor- Protege conference on March 8 in Atlanta, GA.

"We are both blessed and honored to receive this award with Lockheed Martin," said Michelle E. McKinney, President and CEO of M & M. "Together M & M and Lockheed Martin devised and implemented a development program that positioned M & M to compete as a prime contractor and to land direct business with the Department of Labor and the Department of State. Lockheed Martin truly understood the challenges that M & M faced as a small business and gave us the tools to overcome them."

Initiated in 1991, the Department of Defense's Mentor-Protege Program has served hundreds of large corporations and small businesses as a positive, constructive and useful means for building stronger business relationships, elevating small business firms to a higher level, transferring technology, and fulfilling the supply needs of the nation's military. The Nunn-Perry Award recognizing mentor-protege teams was first presented in 1995.

Headquartered in Bethesda, MD., Lockheed Martin employs about 135,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.

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http://www.lockheedmartin.com/.

SOURCE: Lockheed Martin