Innovation will win
2/kloc-0 At the beginning of the century, the modern national defense industry faced many challenges. Lockheed Martin used the innovative development strategy of Japanese semiconductor industry for reference, started the competitiveness of its core business and increased the market share of its products. Lockheed Martin has become the top supplier of three key government departments in the United States, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and has become a world leader not only in satellite manufacturing, but also in space shuttle launch. For Lockheed Martin, which is mainly engaged in aviation, aerospace and national defense industries, the annual R&D investment is as high as 900 million US dollars, of which 15% is used for basic technologies such as nanotechnology and robots, so as to ensure its leading edge in technology and grasp the development direction of the whole industry in the next 20-30 years. To this end, the company has set very positive goals in reducing product costs and reducing manufacturing and product maintenance time. For example, in order to achieve these goals, the F-35 project team used CATIA and DELMIA solutions from dassault systemes to integrate the design and manufacturing links, thus enabling it to develop the most complete and top-level technical process optimization tools and aviation professional modules in the industry, which greatly promoted its ability to maintain its leading position in technology.
Lockheed Martin's 2005 annual report has not been made public, but from the analysis of the total sales of $35.5 billion in 2004, the output value of aviation system is $65,438+$065.438+$800 million, accounting for 33% of the company's total sales. $9.7 billion for electronic systems, accounting for 27%; The space system is 6.4 billion US dollars, accounting for18%; Information technology services and integrated systems each cost $3.8 billion, accounting for 1 1% respectively, of which about1800 million came from contracts signed with the government.
Today, Lockheed Martin's business positioning has been adjusted, with IT products replacing aviation products to support the company's development. As Bob Torres, vice president, said, "We are very proud to be called' platform warehouse', but we also want people to realize that more than 50% of our products are platform-independent, focusing mainly on system integration and IT products." In fact, 20,000 of the 65,438+030,000 employees are IT professionals who pay close attention to the needs of defense and intelligence departments, homeland security departments and federal government agencies.
Few people know that Lockheed Martin writes even more software codes every year than Microsoft. To this end, Microsoft has established a strategic cooperative relationship with Lockheed Martin, and cooperated on some US government defense projects such as the next-generation nuclear-powered aircraft carrier software of the US Navy and the information security system of the Ministry of National Defense, helping the US Air Force to upgrade its technology in a large space command and control center in North America and jointly explore the lucrative technical service market of federal government agencies. Leading Change It is not so much that Lockheed Martin led the trend of military reform with technological innovation, but rather that its technical reserves and R&D capabilities gave it more opportunities to win the war, especially the strategic shift of "network-centric warfare", which made Lockheed Martin a shoo-in in in the military reform led by US Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld at the beginning of this century. The ultimate panorama of "network-centric warfare" integrates various weapon platforms into a whole through the global information network. In the command center, people can see a seamless global situation map between the enemy and ourselves, which requires military enterprises to have the ability to produce weapons platforms that meet various needs at the same time. For this reason, the sensors, data links and systems successfully developed by Rome in the battlefield laboratory will be added to the original weapon platform at the first time, and the research and development of his new weapon platform has a spiral development trend because of the penetration of this technology.
At the same time, Loma Company allocates 50% of the annual R&D budget to the R&D department covering the whole company, so that it can maintain an equal R&D partnership with Sandia National Laboratory, and thus get involved in the research of cutting-edge robots and nanotechnology. These technologies, which have not been fully recognized by people today, are likely to be the foundation of the company in the future, and make it influence the reform of weapon platforms in a technologically advanced state.
Recently, a high-level voice in Rome came out: "We can't wake up one night and suddenly say that we want to enter a certain field. We need to win the trust of customers with good performance, and we must have the necessary capabilities in advance. Opportunities are for those who are prepared. " Soon, CEO Bob Stevens signed an internal investment plan to invest extensively in so-called "breakthrough technologies", because these technologies may become new growth points of enterprises at any time, just like microprocessor technology in the 1960s and 1970s brought revolutionary breakthroughs. The company is very cautious in reporting to the outside world, but through detailed analysis and research, it can be seen that in addition to nanotechnology and robots, it also includes ultrasound, biometrics, continuous reconnaissance technology (especially in the adjacent space, that is, the space utilization within 20- 120 km), information fusion, unmanned driving and automation systems.
skunk works
Speaking of Loma, we have to mention its legendary SkunkWorks, which is famous for developing stealth planes and reconnaissance planes, including the famous F- 1 17 stealth fighter and the top secret aviation development plans of the US military, such as U-2 and SR-7 1.
Skunk Factory, established in 1943, is a pre-research team of aviation branch, bearing the basic research of key technologies. When Lockheed was first built, it was producing the first combat jet fighter XP-80 for the US Air Force. Later, the team made a series of brilliant achievements in the research of high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft and stealth fighters. 10 years ago, its work focused on the aviation department of Lockheed Martin, and its research and development focused on the traditional business, that is, producing advanced fighter prototypes and highly confidential aircraft platforms for the US Department of Defense. Now, Rome knows very well that the innovation that the skunk factory is engaged in is not a simple repetitive work, but an innovation with high investment and high risk. Break the routine and abandon the routine code of conduct, so that it can become a paradise for creative elites to give full play to their dreams. Amazing scientific research achievements have been sent to two manufacturing centers in Fort Worth, Texas, and marietta, Georgia, which have brought refreshing shocks to the world again and again. For example, the research on how to organically combine stealth coating with aircraft high temperature resistant materials will be used in the upcoming F-35 mass production machine.
At present, in the laboratory of Skunk Factory in Pamdar, California, researchers are developing a new global long-range strike platform to support the deficiency of the US Air Force's active medium-range and long-range strike capability, which will eventually replace B-lB, B-2A and B-52. Other research projects include a new generation of stealth tactical transport aircraft to replace C- 130, a new generation of airships for long-distance transportation and reconnaissance, unmanned aerial vehicles and unmanned combat aircraft. Among them, the new generation airship will "create a new era in flight history", which can carry a multi-mission payload of 18 1.4 kg and run in a quasi-stationary orbit at an altitude of about 20,000 meters, and its cruising time is much longer than that of the unmanned aerial vehicles currently used: the planned prototype airship will cruise in space for several months, while the cruising time of the combat airship based on the prototype airship may be as long as 1 year.
Of course, it is worth mentioning that in 2000, the skunk factory cooperated with Lockheed Martin's missile and fire control department in Orlando, Florida for the first time and won the AGM- 158(JASSM) project contract, which enabled the company to successfully enter the international cruise missile market. 200 1, this strategic cooperation not only won the F-35 project of the US Department of Defense, but also brought the richest return to the company in history.
Therefore, R&D personnel make full use of the development experience of fighters such as the F-22, so that the F-35 can learn from its technologies including inclined double vertical tail, coated cockpit cover and covered nozzle, and it is better in reducing radar and infrared characteristics. Although it is small and weighs only about 10 ton, it can carry 5 tons of ammunition and 6 tons of fuel, and its endurance exceeds 1000 km. It can not only fight in the air like the F- 16 fighter, but also become the main force on the aircraft carrier like the F- 18 fighter. It can take off and land vertically, so that it will replace the F- 16 and A- 10 fighters currently used by the US Air Force and the F/A- 18 and AV-8B harrier fighters currently in service. For this reason, the F-35 not only has superior performance and good reliability, but also reduces the cost. Compared with the F-22 fighter's high price of hundreds of millions of dollars, its stand-alone price is only 28 million to 30 million dollars, which has won huge orders around the world.
With Lockheed Martin's transformation from a platform-centered business to a new national defense enterprise that combines system integration, IT field and traditional business, the influence of the skunk factory is increasing day by day. As a core competitiveness, Lockheed Martin has the ability to bid for any national defense project from platform to system, from tradition to "network centric warfare".
Network centric warfare
In the new century, with the obvious penetration of "network-centric warfare" into various military fields, especially the US military has positioned its core direction in the global information grid (GIG) in its own transformation, Lockheed Martin has vigorously strengthened the research and development and marketing of "network-centric warfare" products, and in view of the fact that all items purchased by the US Department of Defense in the future must be able to form a network and be compatible with GIG, it has chosen to set up a "global visual integrated center" in South Virginia near the operational development command center and research center of the Department of Defense.
The center covers an area of 4,645 square meters, and the buildings and infrastructure are considered to facilitate the alliance with the outside world, including the government, industrial departments and research institutions, and to protect the secret cooperation between competitors or government departments. Therefore, it is not an isolated body, but can be connected with the secure computer network of Loma-Mar and the US military, and various testing tasks of "network-centric warfare" can be ensured smoothly through a series of technical means. At present, GVIC, as the "flagship" node of "network centric warfare", has connected more than 20 sites of the company, closely linking customers and partners, thus gradually expanding its business to network centric warfare analysis, joint capability certification and comprehensive evaluation.
Because Lockheed Martin is the only company in the world that has made such a targeted and bold investment, it has high hopes for the application and operation of GVIC, and requires them to adjust their work direction according to the needs of users and partners.
At the same time, Lockheed Martin is developing a UAV with long endurance, large load and large space in order to better meet the requirements of the US military's "network centric warfare" for weapons and equipment. At present, the most widely used UAVs, such as the Predator of the US Air Force, the Hunter of the Army, the Pioneer of the Navy and the Undead of Britain, must be pre-programmed or remotely commanded by the control center. In September, 2005, UCAR Group, led by Lockheed Martin, completed the airborne and ground demonstration tests for UCAR sensors, aiming at demonstrating the feasibility of rotorcraft system that can work independently with manned/unmanned ground-to-air systems. Once this project enters the practical stage, its military use and use value will far exceed the various UAVs currently used, and it will become a more excellent battlefield "node" of "network centric warfare".
Innovation center
Having tasted the sweetness of innovation, Rome chose Suffolk in April 2005 to set up an "Innovation Center" on the basis of the skunk factory, providing a solution for the United States to establish the operational concept of military mission and homeland security and "network-centric warfare". As Robert J. Stephenson, CEO of the center, said, "Through the Innovation Center, we can help our customers face a complex and unpredictable global environment at critical moments, and we can help to form an American coping mechanism by developing integrated systems and network-centric warfare solutions."
The initial work of the innovation center includes rapid prototyping, joint experiments, in-depth analysis of advanced command and control, communication and information warfare, alliance planning, logistics, surveillance and reconnaissance, missile defense and homeland security. Through a series of models and simulation techniques, it focuses on developing the solution of "network-centric warfare" and provides a cooperative environment for commanders, decision makers, combatants, analysts and engineers to evaluate and test new operational concepts. At the same time, he is also responsible for the C4ISR technology development of Lockheed Martin, and conducts advanced research on C4ISR and information warfare, joint deployment, logistics support, local defense and security.
The center is close to the military facilities of the United States Joint Forces Command, the United States Training and Teaching Command, the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the United States Air Force Command and the United States Navy, and is connected with 27 nodes of other centers through the global video broadband network within Lockheed Martin, so that all subsidiaries can share the technological progress brought by this innovation center.
The simulation of "Global Long-range Strike" conducted by Innovation Center shows people the prototype of weapon platform it can provide for global long-range strike at present, including command and control, battlefield space perception, logistics gathering, battlefield protection, etc., all of which are integrated through "network centric warfare". The person in charge of the center said: We have integrated battlefield awareness and intelligence into a global situational awareness map, which has enabled the US military to enter the era of information warfare. Global arrival, key target strike, dynamic target tracking and cruise missile patrol all over the battlefield obviously help the US Department of Defense to decide what kind of strike capability is needed to replace the old bomber group of the US Air Force.
At present, the innovation center has the simulation environment of JASSM and B-2A, and the simulation environment of F/A-22 and F-35 will be built in 2006. The experiment conducted by researchers here is not to find out the capability gap, but to enable customers to truly experience the comprehensive performance of the new weapon platform, so as to help them make appropriate decisions.
It is this continuous acquisition of the latest technology and the transplantation of the company's internal technical level that enables Lockheed Martin to integrate various technologies and apply them to products according to different needs. In addition to the most representative F-35 project, the order for Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) also shows Loma's magic weapon to win by using its technological advantages. Lockheed Martin has never built a whole ship before, but its technical advantages in system integration enabled it to put forward a design scheme according to the requirements of the US Navy in a short time after winning the bid, and finally signed a contract with the US Navy to produce LCS Littoral Combat Ship in 2005.
The LCS Littoral Combat Ship and the F-35 project show people that the business operation mode of arms dealers and the US military has changed greatly. The U.S. military needs to find a balance between the budget and the acquisition of combat capability, and hopes to spend limited funds to acquire a weapon platform that can complete a variety of tasks in different combat environments. Lockheed Martin Company will give full play to its own technological advantages, improve the speed of research and development, reduce costs and create competitiveness suitable for future development.
In addition, Lockheed Martin also put forward the concept of stealth high-speed attack reconnaissance boat (CHARC) for the US Navy. The boat will carry a series of weapons and perform tasks such as small ship defense, offshore anti-submarine warfare, mine clearance, and sending special operations troops to hot spots. C H A R C adopts SWATH design, with two people in the front cockpit and modern helicopter design technology. A 20 mm rapid-fire machine gun is installed in the front, and there are four built-in weapon compartments on both sides of the front of the hull. Each side cabin can be equipped with 1 AGM- 1 14 "Helfa" missile or "Joint General Missile". The boat can also use Lockheed Martin's newly developed "net fire" system, which has over-the-horizon strike capability.
At the same time, Lockheed Martin is selling two kinds of CHARC with the length of 1 1 m and 12 m to the navy and the US Special Operations Command. The boat will be mainly used in conjunction with LCS. Freedom, the first littoral combat ship of the US Navy, is currently under construction and is expected to be delivered to the US Navy at the end of 2006.
Looking at the global market, Lockheed Martin is in an invincible position at present. In addition to producing more F- 16 aircraft, we have mastered the order commitment of nearly 2,600 F-35 aircraft from the United States and Britain, which makes this low-cost, multi-purpose fighter have bright prospects and rich profit returns, and even surpass the F- 16 family as a whole. At the same time, relying on its technical advantages in naval weapon platform, space intelligence reconnaissance technology, C4ISR and missile defense, the company is considered to be one of the few system integration manufacturers in the world that can meet the needs of different customers on a global scale. When we see Loma's many successes in technological innovation in recent years, who can deny its status and ability as a world-class arms giant?