Maddux Report - Tampa Bay's Business, Finance and Development Magazine

Future Bright for Lockheed Martin and Florida Aerospace

Who doesn’t love Florida oranges? And how about that Mickey Mouse, isn’t he a doll? Oh yes, and what about all those aerospace companies? Huh? Well, maybe Florida’s aerospace conglomeration doesn’t have quite the sex appeal of the state’s other big industries, citrus and tourism. But, economically, it packs a similar punch. Consider Lockheed Martin Corp., which though based in Marietta, Ga., employs more than 11,000 people in 100 facilities in 47 Florida cities – including one in Pinellas County. Most of its employees work along Florida’s High Tech Corridor. About 9,000 people work for Lockheed Martin companies in Orlando.

One of its biggest operations is Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, which develops and builds advanced combat systems including tactical missiles, air and missile defense systems, airborne fire control and situation awareness systems, and air-launched strike weapon systems. The company is an industry leader in electro-optics, millimeter wave radar, image and signal processing, advanced materials, electronic packaging, and large systems integration. It has more than 3,600 employees. The division also has a production facility in Ocala where it hires 590 workers.

Lockheed Martin has its fingers in a lot of Florida pies. Many smaller aerospace companies depend on it for work. The fact is, says communications manager Nettie Johnson, Lockheed Martin spends more than $1.9 billion a year on Florida subcontractors. Jim Bodine, chairman of the Florida Aviation Aerospace Alliance, says there are 265 Florida companies working on pieces of the U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor jet fighter program. Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor. Another 100 aerospace companies are working on the C-130J project. Again, Lockheed Martin in Marietta is the prime contractor.

"Lockheed Martin has been a leader in small business subcontracting for many years," Johnson says. "We won many awards in recognition of our efforts from organizations having local and national scope. It’s also worth noting that we currently have a proposal pending with the Department of Defense to serve as their mentor in the department’s formal Mentor Protégé program."

A diverse range of companies benefits from Lockheed Martin’s presence. Among those is Grounds Tech, a minority-owned company that provides grounds maintenance services. Custom Manufacturing & Engineering, a St. Petersburg woman-owned company, supplies Lockheed with electromechanical assemblies. Auto-Trol Technology in Longwood and Zeus Components of Lake Mary are involved in making parts for the C-130J project. The list goes on.

All told, there are more than 1,500 aerospace companies in the state and the majority of them make home along the Interstate 4 Corridor, which stretches from the Tampa Bay area in the west to the Space Coast in the east, according to Bodine. The federal government awards Florida aerospace companies contracts worth more than $6 billion each year, "the bulk of which are along the I-4 Corridor," Bodine says. Another $4 billion a year is awarded to these companies by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). "And those numbers do not include contracts awarded to the state’s many subcontractors and suppliers," Bodine says. In terms of jobs, aerospace companies combined employ 50,000 workers in the state paying an average of $40,000 a year.

The tragic events of Sept. 11 have had dire effects on travel, tourism, lodging, and advertising. Aerospace hasn’t gone unscathed. NASA’s budget is likely to be strained more than it is "as Congress searches for dollars to fight terrorism," Bodine says. "But on another front, the defense budget is likely to be increased and Florida aerospace and defense companies will be very busy. Much as we did during the Gulf War, when you watch TV, you’ll be seeing a lot of Florida products – ranging from JSTARS (St. Augustine) to satellite images (Space Coast) to airborne fire control and precision munitions (Central Florida)."

Corridor Tech FYI

World Commerce Online, an Orlando technology company, has closed its doors. The officers of the company asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Orlando to dismiss the voluntary bankruptcy filing so that secured creditors could proceed with foreclosure, according to an Orlando Sentinel report. About 40 employees who were still on the payroll lost jobs. There are no plans to revive the operation, which burned through more than $50 million in venture capital since 1998.

– F. Ruiz
fruiz@maddux.com

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