OWEGO, NY, 10-FEB-03 -- Lockheed Martin has acquired the intellectual property rights for baggage handling designs from Airline Baggage Handling Inc. (ABHI) of Azusa, CA. The purchase of these designs gives Lockheed Martin the right to manufacture industry-approved components used in nearly all airport terminals throughout North America. With the purchase of these designs, Lockheed Martin has formed an airline baggage handling integration team within its Distribution Technologies business dedicated to offering a top-to-bottom package of services for baggage handling systems, including design, installation, training, and preventative and ongoing maintenance as well as remote support.

This endeavor augments our commercial material handling business. According to industry projections, construction projects at U.S. airports are expected to increase significantly in 2003 to meet an increased demand for enhanced baggage handling systems, said Brian Tanton, vice president of Material Handling and Identification Solutions for Lockheed Martin Distribution Technologies. This endeavor helps us compete immediately in these new market opportunities.

Ranked among the world's top 20 material handling systems integrators, Lockheed Martin's material handling business has proven expertise in successfully deploying complex, enterprisewide automated environments. Our ability to handle complex projects, along with market requirements for rigorous conformance to product specifications, makes our material handling team well-suited for this venture, Tanton added.

Lockheed Martin's airline and airport baggage integration product offering now includes transport and meter belt conveyors, flat plate carousels, customs check-in tables and other standard components required in most baggage handling systems. Proven product designs also exist for other sortation, conveyor and carousel system configurations.

While ABHI will continue to provide aftermarket and warranty support to its longstanding customers, the company will discontinue direct sales and production of its baggage handling product line and exclusively provide transitional manufacturing and engineering services to Lockheed Martin, Tanton said.

Lockheed Martin Distribution Technologies, Owego, NY, designs, produces and integrates mail automation, material handling, recognition, information processing and online postage systems for postal services, package delivery operations, corporate mail centers, baggage handling and distribution, fulfillment and manufacturing centers worldwide. Distribution Technologies is a unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation, Bethesda, MD.