SYRACUSE, NY, 17-MAY-01 -- Lockheed Martin Naval Electronics and Surveillance Systems (NE&SS) in Syracuse was awarded a $114,900 training grant from the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDL) to help nearly 100 high-tech assembly workers at its Salina plant sharpen their skills. The grant was awarded as a result of a proposal to the NYSDL, which Lockheed Martin submitted in conjunction with several local entities including the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), Onondaga Community College and the Onondaga-Madison-Cortland Board of Cooperative Educational Services. The grant also includes an initial skills assessment conducted by the CNY Work Keys Center, a community workforce development project initiated by Syracuse University and the Metropolitan Development Association.

MACNY is pleased to be involved in establishing a program that upgrades the skills of incumbent workers, said Mick Fleming, president of MACNY. Securing this grant truly was a team effort involving company specialists, educators and advocate groups.

This training grant will improve the skill level of senior assemblers for radar and sensor systems for military, commercial and related applications, said Emmanuel Zulueta, director, manufacturing operations, at Lockheed Martin. This funding not only will help train our employees but also establishes a training model for other Central New York companies.

A leader in ground-based and airborne radar, surface vessel and submarine electronic warfare, anti-submarine warfare systems and sensors, minehunting systems and vessel traffic management, Lockheed Martin Naval Electronics & Surveillance Systems (NE&SS) in Syracuse serves customers including all branches of the U.S. armed forces, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Departments of Commerce, Transportation and State, and defense and transportation departments of countries on six continents. Lockheed Martin's Syracuse site employs approximately 2,100 people at its Syracuse, N.Y., headquarters and is a unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation.