Virginia Tech and Lockheed Martin on Nov. 18, 2016, signed a master research agreement to foster increased research collaboration, greater recruiting initiatives, and technical engagement in Virginia Tech programs. The agreement provides a framework for all future research projects, with an immediate focus in microelectronics, power electronics, cybersecurity, and autonomy.

The Virginia Tech-Lockheed Martin agreement builds on a longstanding and solid relationship. Over the past four academic years, Lockheed Martin has hired over 80 university graduates and provided internships to more than 100 students. Lockheed Martin has also established multiple scholarships at Virginia Tech and supported several student teams in engineering competitions.

Lockheed Martin is a corporate affiliate of the Multifunctional Integrated Circuits and Systems Group research team directed by Virginia Tech’s Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Dong Ha and the Center for Power Electronics Systems research team directed by Virginia Tech’s University Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Fred Lee. In addition, Lockheed Martin has partnered with Virginia Tech’s Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology on research focused on signal processing, cognition, and wireless communications.

“The growth and resilience of research universities will increasingly depend on their ability to form deep and enduring partnerships with strategic allies such as Lockheed Martin,” said Virginia Tech president Tim Sands, who signed the agreement on Nov. 18, 2016. “Virginia Tech is a research leader in many areas that are directly related to Lockheed and the federal government. This agreement allows us to work together more efficiently and use our developing knowledge to address the world’s most pressing needs.”

“Lockheed Martin is continuously pushing the limits of technologies to help solve the world’s most complex challenges and this effort requires connecting highly-skilled talent with opportunities to collaborate,” said Rod Makoske, senior vice president, Corporate Engineering, Technology, and Operations, Lockheed Martin. “Virginia Tech has a tremendous pool of research talent and we believe this new agreement sets in motion a productive and fruitful research agenda that is critical to our nation’s innovation future.”

“This master research agreement will allow us to begin new projects quickly,” Virginia Tech Vice President for Research and Innovation Theresa Mayer said. “When we identify a new opportunity, we can execute an agreement within weeks as opposed to many months. The pace of technology moves quickly, so if it takes too long to negotiate a contract an opportunity might pass. By simplifying the process of forming research partnerships, master agreements also remove barriers for faculty interested in working with industry.”

Mayer added, “As a leading advanced technology company, Lockheed Martin can bring cutting-edge problems to our faculty and students,” she said. “This agreement will fuel additional collaboration and open up technology-transition pathways for research to enter the marketplace. For our entire university, anyone working in areas that are aligned with Lockheed Martin’s interests and needs should view this as an exciting opportunity.”

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