ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., July 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) has named a national research university and a consortium of New Mexico universities to its team competing for the Sandia National Laboratories Management and Operating contract. Purdue University, New Mexico State University and the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology will play key roles in Sandia's specialized research and development and technology transfer initiatives.

Each university will provide expert personnel and facilities to advance Sandia's dynamic research and development programs, which are on the cutting edge of nuclear deterrence, cyber security, energy technologies, non-proliferation and advanced computing. In addition, the new team arrangements will allow students and faculty from the universities to interact more strategically at Sandia to promote collaboration, innovation and talent development.

"Sandia's hallmark is nationwide impact coupled with strong New Mexico roots, and we've built a team that reflects that character while positioning the Labs to meet the needs of a dynamic national security environment," said Rick Ambrose, chair of the Sandia Corporation board of directors and executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space Systems. "Our goal is to help the National Nuclear Security Administration further solidify Sandia's role as a national asset by bringing in even stronger R&D partnerships, improving the national security talent pipeline and sparking small business growth through a robust commercialization program."

Purdue will lead technology transfer initiatives for Sandia, partnering with national and New Mexico-based start-ups and entrepreneurs to license technology for commercial use. Purdue's Research Foundation and Purdue Foundry operate one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S.

"Our missions in research, education and service align extremely well with those of Sandia and our partners in conducting work in the national public interest," said Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue University. "The excellence of the partner researchers in areas of importance to national security combined with Purdue's expertise in technology transfer make this a team without equal."

"As a higher education institution in New Mexico, New Mexico State University is excited to be part of the Lockheed Martin team and continue its support of Sandia and the Department of Energy by leveraging our excellent educational, research, and technology transfer and commercialization programs," said Dr. Vimal Chaitanya, NMSU vice president for research. "NMSU has been a part of the fabric of Sandia for decades, as more than 25 percent of Sandia employees have received at least one degree from NMSU."

"This is a great opportunity for New Mexico Tech to work even more closely with Sandia," said Dr. Van Romero, New Mexico Tech's chief operating officer and vice president for research and economic development. "We have a long history with Sandia, and have developed programs, both academically and in our research, specifically to support Sandia over the years. This bid presents an opportunity to take our work with Sandia to the next level."

Since 1993, Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, has served as the Management and Operating contractor for the Labs, in support of the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration. Sandia is currently meeting scope, schedule and cost requirements on six major engineering design programs supporting the nation's nuclear deterrence mission and managing an additional $1 billion portfolio of cutting-edge energy and national security programs.

About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 125,000 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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SOURCE Lockheed Martin