PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND, June 23rd, 1999 -- Lockheed Martin has been awarded a £130 million ($210 million US) five-year contract by Royal Mail for its Address Interpretation (AI) project. The AI project will enhance Royal Mail's capability to recognise machine printed and hand-written addresses thereby increasing the use of automation for handling letters, flats and ultimately packets and parcels. The AI project is the cornerstone of Royal Mail's vision of a nationally integrated mail processing system that will provide a more effective and efficient service and with it improved customer satisfaction.

Lockheed Martin's AI system is based on a highly modular open architecture system that will automatically recognise the addresses of mail pieces rejected by legacy equipment and identify a precise location to which they should be sent. AI will provide additional information about mail pieces such as stamp and delivery classifications to improve Royal Mail's business performance. It will also provide a system-wide capability for information storage and retrieval, summary reporting and pipeline performance measurement.

Following a demanding international competition, Lockheed Martin, as the prime systems integrator, leads a world-class team which includes Bell & Howell, Firstlogic, IBM UK Ltd, Mannesmann Dematic Postal Automation (previously Alcatel), Racal Telecom and Siemens ElectroCom.

"This is our first significant contract with Royal Mail. It provides the opportunity for us to deliver a world-class solution that meets the customer's needs and maintains Royal Mail at the forefront of the postal business," commented Dr. Michael B. Schoultz, President of Lockheed Martin Postal Systems. "It also represents a building block to future business in the United Kingdom and Europe, and strengthens our position as a major provider of technical solutions in the world market."

The AI system represents Lockheed Martin's next generation in recognition and automation technology, building on its experience and performance as one of the largest providers of technology and services for the U.S. Postal Service. Lockheed Martin's enhanced hand-written and machine printed letter mail recognition capability, which is key to the AI system, is being deployed in more than 250 of its Remote Computer Reader systems across the United States.

Lockheed Martin Postal Systems is a leader in the design, production and systems integration of a broad product portfolio of recognition, sortation, material handling and information management systems equipment and technology for postal and commercial customers. It is part of the Lockheed Martin Electronics Platform Integration organisation, which provides advanced-technology products, services and systems integration solutions. The organisation is an operating unit of Lockheed Martin Electronics Sector, which designs, develops and produces advanced components and systems for military, civil government and commercial customers around the world.

UK - Christopher Trippick, Communications & PR Programme Manager,

Lockheed Martin UK Government Systems, +44 1705 564197US - Michael Drake, Director, Communications, Electronics Platform Integration