Original Date: 04/20/1998
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

The International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation (ITT) was incorporated in the State of Maryland in 1920. Over the years, the corporation diversified and established facilities throughout the country. Two in particular, during the 1940s, were ITT Federal (New Jersey) and ITT Laboratories (Indiana). The latter resulted when ITT crossed paths with Philo T. Farnsworth, the inventor of electronic television. In 1939, Farnsworth had set up the Farnsworth Television and Radio Corporation in Fort Wayne, Indiana to mass produce his invention. However, unfortunate circumstances caused Farnsworth to sell his company to ITT in 1949, and become a vice president of ITT Laboratories until his retirement in 1967. During the 1960s, ITT Federal and ITT Laboratories expanded their products and services, and renamed themselves ITT Defense Communications and ITT Aerospace/Optical, respectively, to reflect their new directions. In March 1990, these facilities merged to create ITT Aerospace/Communications Division (A/CD)in Fort Wayne, Indiana the focus of this BMP survey.

Today, ITT’s corporate structure consists of its world headquarters, ITT Industries in White Plains, New York; three core divisions: ITT Automotive (Michigan), ITT Defense & Electronics (Virginia), and ITT Fluid Technology (New Jersey); and 410 facilities worldwide. At the corporate level, ITT employs 59,000 personnel and achieved $8.8 billion in sales for 1997. This diversified company designs, develops, and manufactures industrial products such as four-wheel, anti-lock brake systems; advanced technology military communications gear; geostationary imaging instruments; and giant pumps capable of emptying an Olympic-size swimming pool in 90 seconds flat. The surveyed facility, ITT A/CD, is a unit of ITT Industries and a world leader in Tactical Communications and Space Navigation/Meteorological Systems. ITT A/CD employs 2,500 personnel and achieved $500 million in sales for 1997. Among the best practices documented were ITT A/CD’s commercial parts process; supplier integrated product development; surface mount device processing database; test time reduction; integrated management plan; and risk management process.

Two of ITT A/CD’s most notable successes are the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer instruments and the Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System devices. Despite its invaluable contributions since the 1970s, Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometers are relatively unknown to the general public. These instruments, which currently fly on U.S. and European satellites, provide irreplaceable data and images for accurately forecasting weather storms and patterns. Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometers are also now being used for non- meteorological applications such as tracking oil spills, locating schools of fish; and mapping snow melts. Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System devices, another success, are highly reliable, combat net radio systems designed for the U.S. Army. Although traditional testing verifies that these radios exceed military combat requirements by five fold, it is the unofficial stories of Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System that truly demonstrate the radios’ durability. Flying over Panama, a transport helicopter unintentionally dropped a Light Assault Vehicle from 500 feet, demolishing the vehicle on impact. The radio system, when removed from the wreckage and tested, functioned normally. The interior of an M113 Armored Personnel Carrier caught fire during field testing in Korea. Despite scorched paint, a melted keypad, and a cracked front panel, the radio continued to work. During maneuvers, another Light Assault Vehicle plunged into the Atlantic Ocean off the Carolina coast, and sank so deep into the murky salt water that divers were needed to recover the vehicle. The radio remained operational, and guided the divers to the location via its illuminated front panel. For its excellent work in battlefield communications, ITT A/CD became the first recipient of the U.S. Army Communications and Electronics Command’s Contractor Performance Certification in 1991.

ITT continues to enhance its world-class reputation by providing reliable, high quality products and services. The company supports this effort through engineering excellence and innovation, and thrives today as a high-technology leader with real-world impact. To maintain its leadership and position itself for the future, ITT relies on a cardinal principle define the need, respond to that need, and then exceed the expectations. The BMP survey team considers the following practices to be among the best in industry and government.

TABLE OF ACRONYMS:
The following acronyms were used in this report:

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.