Microsoft Makes Team for New Navy Ship

By Gail Repsher Emery, Staff Writer



OCT. 13 ? Microsoft Federal Systems has joined a team that wants to build the Navy's next-generation surface ship, the Zumwalt DD 21 land-attack destroyer.



The DD 21 Blue Team is led by Bath Iron Works, a subsidiary of General Dynamics Corp. of Falls Church, Va., and the Naval Electronics & Surveillance Systems division of Lockheed Martin Corp., Bethesda, Md.



The proposal for the ship's initial
system design is due to the Navy in mid-November. One contractor team will be selected in 2001 to produce the ship. The first destroyer is scheduled for delivery in 2010. The Bath Iron Works team is competing with a team led by Ingalss Shipbuilding, a division of Litton Industries Inc. of Woodland Hills, Calif.



Microsoft will work with its team members to identify best practices in software development and military solutions to support the ship's information infrastructure. The company will provide solutions based on leading commercial software technologies and research and development.



"The addition of Microsoft ... will allow us to leverage software and information technology marketplace trends, ensuring that the DD 21 will enjoy the benefit of the most modern, cost-effective computer processing software, hardware and architecture available," said Mike Hughes, president of Lockheed Martin's DD 21 program.



The Navy plans to procure the DD 21 Zumwalt-class destroyer under a streamlined acquisition process to encourage design flexibility and the use of commercial technologies.

Technical advances in ship design will enable the DD 21 to operate with up to 70 percent fewer crew members than today's surface combatants require.