"The leadership and workforce at our Lake Charles Maintenance and Modification Center are dedicated to excellent program performance, continuous productivity improvement and finding innovative ways of doing things," said Tom Vice, corporate vice president and president, Northrop Grumman Technical Services.

"A highly skilled and experienced team along with the tailored processes and tools are the cornerstones of any successful MRO. This is especially true for an MRO that supports our nation's military with critical systems like the Joint STARS and KC-10 Extender." 

Vice, along with Kevin Mitchell, Lake Charles Maintenance and Modification Center site director and sector vice president for production operations for Technical Services, and Don Pierson, assistant secretary of Louisiana Economic Development (LED), received the award on behalf of the site at an awards ceremony held during the Aviation Week MRO Americas 2011 Conference and Exhibition on April 12 in Miami. 

Editors from the publication cited the site's streamlined tool control system, which utilizes radio-frequency identification technology, as a discriminator in the site's selection for the award. The site's drive for continuous improvement was also considered in the selection. 

"Congratulations to Northrop Grumman for being recognized by Aviation Week Magazine as the 2011 MRO of the Year. Louisiana is proud to celebrate Northrop Grumman's continued success at Chennault International Airport and as an economic driver for Southwest Louisiana," said Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. "This award is well-deserved recognition for the hard-working Louisianians who continue to provide quality workmanship and service."