Lockheed Martin Extends JSF Deal with Castle
A.M. Castle & Co., Franklin Park, Ill., will enter a six-year contract extension with Lockheed Martin for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program. The contract extension is subject to a purchase order being issued by Lockheed Martin. It would extend Castle's current contract through 2016 for the supply of aluminum plate and various value-added processing and collaborative supply chain management services.
"We appreciate the opportunity that Lockheed Martin has given the company to continue to provide aluminum plate and services in support of this critical defense program. We look forward to continuing to provide high-quality service to them,” says Michael Goldberg, president and CEO of A.M. Castle.
Based on the JSF program's current production schedule, the total potential value of the anticipated contract extension is estimated to exceed $300 million over the six-year term.
"We have worked with Lockheed Martin throughout the initial phases of the JSF program and appreciate the continued confidence in our ability to supply them and their program partners with products and services across North America, Europe, Turkey and Australia as the program moves into the initial production phase," says Blain Tiffany, president of Castle Metals aerospace business. “The program's current production schedule forecasts increasing production rates during the term of the anticipated contract extension, with full rate production beginning in 2016.