U.S. Navy awards Lockheed Martin a contract modification worth nearly $154M

SALINA, N.Y. — The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) a nearly $154 million modification to a previously awarded contract for block 2 of the Navy’s SEWIP program.

SEWIP is short for surface electronic warfare improvement program, according to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) website, which announced the contract modification on July 10.

The mission systems and training business unit of the Bethesda, Maryland–based defense contractor has operations in Salina.  That location won the Navy contract modification, according to the DOD website.

The DOD website describes SEWIP as an “evolutionary acquisition program to upgrade the existing out-of-production AN/SLQ-32(V) electronic-warfare system, providing improved anti-ship missile defense and situational awareness.”

SEWIP block 2 provides “improved” electronic-support receivers and combat-system interface and expands the receiver/antenna group to keep surface electronic-warfare capabilities “current with the pace of the threat and to yield improved system integration,” according to the description on the DOD website.

About 69 percent of Lockheed Martin effort will occur at the Salina location, while the Lansdale, Pennsylvania location will handle 19 percent and the Chelmsford, Massachusetts site will handle the remaining 12 percent of the work, according to the DOD.

The defense contractor should finish its work on the project in April 2018, the DOD added.

U.S. Representative John Katko (R–Camillus) applauded the announcement in a statement his office released on Thursday.

Through the appropriations process, Katko supported the Navy’s funding request for SEWIP II, his office said.  The funding enables Lockheed Martin to continue its work updating the Navy’s electronic-warfare system and “maximize” the fleet’s capabilities, it added.

“Lockheed Martin has a state-of-the-art production line with the capacity to help fulfill the U.S. Navy’s modernization goals,” Katko said in the statement.  “This funding will ensure that the Navy gets the important, upgraded technology that it needs while maintaining our strong workforce at the Syracuse Lockheed Martin operation.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com