Ball Aerospace Wins $6.5M Contract to Support Air Force Research Laboratory

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., May 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. has won its fifth consecutive contract to operate the Infrared Radiation Effects Laboratory (IRREL) at the Space Vehicles Directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL/VSSS).

Ball's Systems Engineering Solutions (SES) group, located in Albuquerque, was awarded the five-year contract to operate the IRREL for AFRL/VSSS from its Albuquerque location. The IRREL is the Department of Defense's premier national independent characterization laboratory for focal plane arrays (FPA), and is a key component in AFRL FPA technology development programs. The estimated contract amount for the entire five-year period, beginning May 1, 2007, is $6,440,000.

"Since our first contract in 1987, Ball Aerospace has consistently met the AFRL need for independent characterization of critical technology development programs," said Fred Doyle, Ball Aerospace's National Defense Solutions vice president.

The IRREL is a key component in AFRL FPA technology development efforts, and the data and analyses produced by the IRREL are vitally important. These data are used to determine the overall performance and radiation hardness of FPAs used in space-based applications and to provide independent validation to the AFRL to substantiate performance claims from FPA manufacturers.

In addition to supporting the IRREL at the AFRL, Ball Aerospace also supports AFRL's Directed Energy Directorate and Space Technology Division, the National Assessment Group, and Air Force evaluation activities from its Albuquerque offices.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. supports critical missions of important national agencies such as the Department of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities. The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications. Over the past 50 years, Ball Aerospace has been responsible for numerous technological and scientific 'firsts' and now acts as a technology innovator for the aerospace market.

Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging products and owns Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. Ball reported 2006 sales of $6.6 billion and employs 15,500 people.

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