Lockheed Martin seeks to strengthen cooperation with Saudi Arabia as evinced by its first Industry Collaboration Forum held in Riyadh on Jan. 29-30 aimed at fostering relationships with local industry and creating opportunities for new partnerships. The forum's key objective was to familiarize the Saudi private and public sectors with Lockheed Martin's programs in a wide range of industries, including security and border protection, defense and maritime services, renewable and alternative energy, and IT and infrastructure development. Lockheed Martin has made a long-term commitment to Saudi Arabia and is actively looking to develop partnerships with local businesses. The forum featured a number of notable speakers including Lockheed Martin President and Chief Operating Officer Chris Kubasik and United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia James B. Smith. Major General Abdullah Al Saleh said “Lockheed Martin's Industry Collaboration Forum is a positive step toward strengthening relationships with Saudi industry to assist the Kingdom in creating jobs.” In addition to briefings on Lockheed Martin's business structure, products and core capabilities, the event featured small breakout sessions where Saudi business leaders presented their ideas and discussed areas for future collaboration with Lockheed Martin. “Lockheed Martin is proud to be a trusted partner for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” said Alan M. Chinoda, Lockheed Martin Saudi Arabia Chief Executive. “We are expanding our presence in the Kingdom, and broadening our engagement with Saudi industry is an important part of this effort. We hope the process begun over the last two days will lead to new business opportunities that will benefit Saudi Arabia and its people.” Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security company that employs about 123,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation's net sales for 2011 were $46.5 billion.
