Northrop Grumman Corporation (NOC) announced it is designating five centres of design and integration excellence in support of its Aerospace Systems sector’s manned aircraft, unmanned systems and electronic attack businesses. In addition, the company announced plans to close an Information Systems sector facility in Dominguez Hills, California.

“Consolidating these centres of excellence will improve our strategic alignment with our customers’ need for increasingly innovative and affordable products, services and solutions,” said Wes Bush, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Northrop Grumman. “We continuously examine our operational capacity to determine how we can leverage it in the most efficient and cost-competitive manner. Given the current budget environment, it is imperative that we act to enhance future performance, innovation and affordability for our customers.”

The Manned Aircraft Design Center of Excellence will be located in Melbourne, Florida, and will include aircraft design work currently being performed at the company’s Bethpage, New York, facility. The B-2, F/A-18 and F-35 programmes will remain in Palmdale, El Segundo and Redondo Beach, California, respectively.

The company’s Unmanned Systems Center of Excellence will be located at its Rancho Bernardo facility in San Diego, California. Two programmes will transition to that centre: the MQ-4C Triton programme from Bethpage, and the NATO Airborne Ground Surveillance programme from Melbourne, Florida.

An Electronic Attack Center of Excellence will be located in Bethpage, and will include the Aerospace Systems’ Electronic Attack programme team.

The company has designated two Aircraft Integration Centers of Excellence, one in Palmdale, California, and the other in St. Augustine, Florida. Current integration activities in Moss Point, Mississippi, and New Town, N.D., are not included in this transition.

The company will close its Dominguez Hills, California, facility as part of its long-term effort to reduce facilities and costs. This facility supports the development and integration of C4I networked communications capabilities and solutions, and mission support work for the information systems sector. This work will be transitioned in phases to other company facilities beginning in 2013. Northrop Grumman also announced plans to complete the closure of its electronic systems sector’s Norwalk, Connecticut, facility, including radar test range operations.