Industry News
EDS Signs $700 Million Contract with Bank of America
Representatives of EDS announced Monday a six-year, US$700 million agreement to integrate the communications infrastructure for recently acquired MBNA Corporation into Bank of America's state-of-the-art voice and data network.
Once the integration is complete, Bank of America's voice and data network will connect more than 200,000 associates in 5,800 retail banking centers and 50 contact centers. Furthermore, the network integration will span 30 states and the District of Columbia, linking 16,700 ATMs while facilitating Internet and telephone banking services.
In February 2003, EDS began transforming Bank of America's nationwide voice and data communications infrastructure into a stronger and more flexible one-stop solution for voice and data services as part of a 10-year, US$4.5 billion contract. As part of the overall managed network services agreement with Bank of America, EDS provides secure telecommunications and networking solutions using voice-over IP technology, helpdesk services for the additional contact center and credit card processing locations.
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Marvell To Purchase Intel's Communications And Application Processor Business For $600 Million
Representatives of Marvell Technology Group, Ltd. and Intel Corporation announced Wednesday that they have signed an agreement for Intel to sell its communications and application processor business to Marvell for a purchase price of US$600 million plus the assumption by Marvell of certain liabilities. The planned sale will give Marvell a strong presence in the growing market segment for processors used in smart handheld devices. The sale also will enable Intel to focus its investments on its core businesses, including high-performance, low-power Intel Architecture-based processors and emerging technologies for mobile computing, including Wi-Fi and WiMAX broadband wireless technologies. The transaction is expected to close in approximately four to five months and is subject to regulatory review and other normal closing conditions.
Intel's communications and application processor business develops and sells processors for handheld devices including smart phones and personal digital assistants. The business' processors, based on Intel XScale technology, include the Intel® PXA9xx communications processor, codenamed "Hermon," which powers Research in Motion's (RIM) Blackberry 8700 device. The Intel PXA27x applications processor, codenamed "Bulverde," is used in the Palm Treo smart phone, the Motorola Q and other devices.
Intel's communications and application processor business includes approximately 1,400 employees involved in a variety of functions, including engineering, product testing/validation, operations and marketing. It is expected that the vast majority of these employees will become employees of Marvell.
Intel currently intends to receive the entire purchase price in cash. However, Intel has the option to take up to $100 million of the $600 million purchase price in Marvell common stock. Upon closing, Marvell may record a one-time charge for purchased in-process research and development expenses. The amount of that charge, if any, has not yet been determined. Intel will provide information regarding the financial impact of the transaction at a later time.
After the close of the transaction, Intel intends to continue manufacturing products currently sold by this business for handheld devices and embedded applications, and to manufacture products that are being designed into upcoming devices. This arrangement is expected to continue while Marvell arranges other manufacturing resources. Intel and Marvell do not anticipate disruptions in the supply of these products due to this planned sale.
This planned sale does not impact the ability of other Intel businesses in the networking and storage market segments to continue to use ARM-based, Intel XScale processors. Those Intel businesses will be able to continue licensing chip designs directly from ARM Holdings PLC and modifying the designs for their needs.
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U.S. Navy Awards Lockheed Martin Contract
The U.S. Navy awarded a Lockheed Martin-led team nearly US$198 million for construction of the Navy's third Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). This is the second LCS awarded to the Lockheed Martin team.
The Lockheed Martin team will begin construction in the first quarter of 2007 at Bollinger Shipyards in Lockport, LA. The ship will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2009. The U.S. Congress authorized and appropriated the funds for this additional ship in the fiscal year 2006 Department of Defense Appropriations Act.
Bollinger Shipyards has already played an active role in the LCS program. During the construction of the first LCS, Freedom (LCS 1), Bollinger constructed one of the ship's stern modules, giving their Lockport workforce the opportunity to train on LCS processes and further demonstrating the strength and integration capabilities of the Lockheed Martin team.
Freedom, the nation's first LCS, is currently under construction at Marinette Marine in Marinette, WI. The Lockheed Martin team was awarded the contract for Freedom in December 2004, began construction of the ship in February 2005 and laid its keel in June 2005. The ship will be christened this fall and delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2007.
The Lockheed Martin team design for LCS is a survivable, semi-planing steel monohull that provides outstanding maneuverability with proven sea-keeping characteristics to support launch and recovery operations, mission execution and optimum crew comfort. The LCS will be the first surface combatant to be classed under the new Naval Vessel Rules by the American Bureau of Shipping.
The Lockheed Martin-led team includes naval architect Gibbs & Cox, ship builders Marinette Marine, a subsidiary of The Manitowoc Company, Inc., and Bollinger Shipyards.
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U.S. Joint Forces Command Extends General Dynamics Contract
General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, has been awarded a US$95.5 million contract extension to continue its support of the U.S. Joint Forces Command's Joint Experimentation Program and Joint Futures Lab. Work will be performed in Suffolk, Va., and includes engineering, technical and administrative services for joint concept development and prototyping.
This award is to execute Option II, Lot III of a five-year contract awarded in February 2004, extending the term of the original contract until July 2007. The total value of the contract to date, including this option, is US$277.7 million. The U.S. Navy Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Norfolk, Philadelphia Detachment, awarded the modification in support of the Joint Forces Command.
General Dynamics has supported the Joint Experimentation Program since 1998 and holds separate contracts to support the Joint Forces Command's Joint Systems Integration Command, Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration Program, and Joint Warfighting Center.
The Joint Experimentation Program's mission is to develop, explore, test and assess new joint warfighting concepts, organizational structures and emerging technologies through discovery, innovation and experimentation in order to drive transformational changes that achieve the optimal future joint force capability. The Joint Experimentation Program supports the military services, combatant commanders, government agencies, multinational partners and others in validating future joint concepts and providing recommendations to military and civilian leadership. Program success is measured in improved future military capabilities placed in the hands of warfighters and improved coalition capabilities in multinational operations.
General Dynamics also supports the Joint Futures Laboratory (JFL) as part of this contract. This 111,000-square-foot laboratory opened in 2003 and expanded the facilities of the permanent Distributed Continuous Experimentation Environment laboratory. With its state-of the-art modeling and simulation systems, Joint Forces Command is able to collaboratively conduct and distribute experiments worldwide. This robust venue for classified and unclassified electronically distributed experimentation offers a world-class resource where concepts may be repeatedly examined from the time they emerge as potentially good ideas, through various discovery events, to their ultimate transition to the operational forces.
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Raytheon Awarded $45 Million U.S. Navy Contract
Raytheon Company has been awarded a US$45 million U.S. Navy contract for the AN/AQS-22 Airborne Low Frequency Sonar (ALFS) system. Under the contract, Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) will manufacture, test, deliver and integrate six AN/AQS-22 systems and provide associated services, support and weapon replaceable assemblies. AN/AQS-22 is the primary undersea warfare sensor for the U.S. Navy's MH-60R multi-mission helicopter, providing critical undersea search, detection, and prosecution capabilities. AN/AQS-22 provides critical undersea warfare mission support capabilities, including submarine detection, tracking, localization, classification, acoustic intercept, underwater communication and environmental data collection. IDS has provided the U.S. Navy with these critical capabilities since 1999, delivering systems under low-rate production contracts. This contract advances the program into full rate production, the first accelerated production contract since the initial fielding of the MH-60R helicopter into the U.S. Navy Fleet earlier this year. Work on the contract will be performed at Raytheon's Maritime Mission Center in Portsmouth, R.I.
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U.S. Air Force Awards $28 Million Contract to Rockwell Collins for Next-Generation GPS Technology
The U.S. Air Force has selected Rockwell Collins to develop next-generation Global Positioning System (GPS) technology as part of the Modernized User Equipment (MUE) Receiver Card Development program.
The main objective of the program is to develop and demonstrate modernized user segment receiver cards, establishing first proof of design for the modernized GPS architecture. The current contract, to be executed through October 2007, supports preliminary design of the modernized receiver cards for ground and airborne applications. Completion of the receiver card development, test and security certification will be accomplished under a government exercisable contract option for these tasks.
This program, awarded by the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), represents the military user equipment portion of a next-generation GPS system that adds a new military signal and security architecture. The new technology offers enhanced integrity, exclusivity and improved anti-jam capabilities.
In 2003, Rockwell Collins was selected for a Program Research and Development Announcement (PRDA) contract for MUE. The objective of this three-year contract was to understand the technical, security, certification and implementation requirements, as well as the associated risks regarding development of MUE. The study also researched the ability to design, develop and produce MUE that can effectively detect, acquire, track and process the new military signal (M-Code) along with the current signal structure in a MUE receiver design.
