RESTON, Va., Jan. 6, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has been awarded a contract potentially valued at $68 million to design, integrate, install and test the U.S. Coast Guard's Nationwide Automatic Identification System (Nationwide AIS) core data exchange capability.
This new capability will serve as the foundation for Nationwide AIS, which will enhance maritime security, marine and navigational safety, search and rescue efforts and environmental protection.
Nationwide AIS will be a two-way maritime digital communication system, which will continually transmit and receive voiceless vessel data, including vessel identity, position, speed, course, destination and other data of critical interest for navigation safety, marine mobility and maritime security. In addition, data collected by Nationwide AIS will be combined with other government intelligence and surveillance data and shared with authorized government operators, contributing to maritime situational awareness, in part by identifying and locating vessels offshore.
"Nationwide AIS is a critical Coast Guard program providing operational decision makers with the data they need to forecast maritime risks and more rapidly and efficiently respond to safety and security threats. It will also improve national security through the detection and identification of possibly threatening vessels while they are still far from shore," said Mike Twyman, vice president of the Northrop Grumman Mission Systems sector's Integrated Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence Systems operating unit. "The Coast Guard's approach is to design and field a low-risk solution while meeting their operational capability milestones. To meet the challenge, we integrated proven non-developmental items from the commercial and defense sectors to provide the best-value solution."
The single award contract includes an $11.5 million, two-year base period and six 12-month options. If all options are exercised, the contract could be valued at $68 million and will facilitate Nationwide AIS coverage for all ships approaching the coastline and ports of the United States and its territories, significantly enhancing the security of the nation's ports and coastal areas.
The win strengthens Northrop Grumman's leadership position in the Coast Guard command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) market.
"Northrop Grumman has a long history of providing the Coast Guard with C4ISR systems. This win positions Northrop Grumman for continued growth in the Coast Guard C4ISR and maritime domain awareness markets," Twyman said. "Three years of preparation and a significant investment of our own resources resulted in a best value proposal for the Coast Guard."
The Northrop Grumman team for this Nationwide AIS award includes Allied Technology Group Inc., Rockville, Md.; CACI International Inc., Arlington, Va.; URS Corp., San Francisco; International Communications and Navigation (ICAN) Inc., Dallas; True Heading AB, Stockholm, Sweden; Broadpoint Inc., Houston; GTSI Corp., Herndon, Va.; Joint Logistics Managers Inc., Prince Georges, Va.; and Pharos Marine Automatic Power Inc., Houston.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.