ALMA MARTINEZ SELECTED AS A 1997 DISTINGUISHED NEW ENGINEER BY THE SOCIETY OF WOMEN ENGINEERS

June 6, 1997, NEWPORT NEWS, VA. -- The Hampton Roads Section of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) recently recognized Newport News Shipbuilding employee Alma Martinez as a 1997 Distinguished New Engineer. This award is given annually to five recipients nationwide by the Society of Women Engineers in recognition of their contributions to and leadership in the engineering profession, SWE, and other technical, professional and community organizations. Martinez will be honored at an Awards Banquet on June 28, 1997 during the SWE National Convention in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

As a manager of Production Control for the Steel Fabrication Division at Newport News Shipbuilding, Martinez is responsible for managing the facility's production control planning processes, sequencing events for the facility's work centers, advance preparing for new product lines and facility capacity planning.

Martinez began her career with Newport News Shipbuilding as an associate engineer in the SEAWOLF Submarine Engineering Program. She then moved on to lead system design development in Commercial Ship Engineering, which resulted in the publication of various papers which she had completed. Martinez was then advanced to an Engineering Supervisor in Aircraft Carrier Engineering. In 1996, she was selected as one of 37 experts in her field to reengineer company processes and to implement new processes company-wide.

Martinez received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Old Dominion University in 1987 and is currently pursuing a Master's degree in engineering management from George Washington University.

Martinez has been a member of SWE since 1985 and has served at all levels of the organization. In addition to her SWE activities, she serves as the Section Director for the Eastern Virginia Section, as a member of the Region Operating Board and as a member of the Board on Minorities and Women for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Newport News Shipbuilding is America's largest ship design and construction company. It has produced approximately 800 ships during its 111 years of operations - including Navy aircraft carriers, submarines, and cruisers. The company is currently building the nuclear-powered aircraft carriers Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) and Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) and has begun work in preparation for construction of the Navy's New Attack Submarine. It is also building nine Double Eagle product tankers. Its 1996 revenues totaled $1.87 billion, with earnings before interest and taxes of $140 million. The current backlog is approximately $3.3 billion. The workforce numbers 18,000, making it Virginia's largest private employer.