27 Mar 2008 | Ref. 104/2008
HONOLULU — BAE Systems is sponsoring five local high school teams that will participate in the Hawaii’s FIRST(For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics regional competition, which is co-sponsored by NASA and BAE Systems, at the University of Hawaii on March 28-29. More than 500 students from across the state and the mainland are expected to attend.
FIRST brings teams and their mentors together in a competition that emphasizes teamwork, innovation, and strategy to design and build robots capable of performing competitive tasks. BAE Systems is investing more than $1 million in FIRST through donations of money, resources, and employee volunteering, making the company the largest corporate contributor to the FIRST Robotics Competition.
“BAE Systems’ local and mainland personnel have been outstanding in their support of the Hawaii regional,” said Alex Ho, state coordinator for the FIRST Robotics Competition. “They have been instrumental in the planning, organizing, and funding aspects of this event, and have mentored and sponsored five teams” — McKinley, Radford, Moanalua, Maryknoll, and Iolani. “We are hopeful that more companies will step forward to do what BAE Systems has done to assist the state of Hawaii, ensuring the success and sustainability of the FIRST Robotics Competition program in the future.”
All teams simultaneously received a challenge earlier this year to design, develop, and build a robot in six weeks using a common parts list. The robots will compete in randomly selected alliances, scored on performance of a variety of tasks. Some robots have been programmed for autonomous movement, while others are operated by radio control.
"BAE Systems has provided direct financial support to our students and teams, and they have also provided dedicated employees to serve as Hawaii’s mentors, to work with our local committee as we develop and implement the state’s FIRST Robotics Competition,” said Hawaii governor Linda Lingle. “Through the generous support of BAE Systems and its dedicated employees, the students of Hawaii have been given a unique opportunity to build their future, and the future of our state."
Of the more than 1,500 teams participating nationwide in the 2008 season, BAE Systems is directly supporting 65 teams located near company sites in 14 states and the District of Columbia. The company also will sponsor seven of 41 regional events, as well as the FIRST Championship, to be held April 17-19 in Atlanta.
BAE Systems has more than 700 employees in Hawaii at a number of locations. BAE Systems is the largest private sector ship repair company in Hawaii, and supports Department of Defense customers with a variety of mission support services and information technology solutions in Hawaii and throughout the Pacific Rim, to include Alaska, Japan and Guam.
About BAE Systems
BAE Systems is the premier global defense and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, information technology solutions and customer support services. With 97,500 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £15.7 billion (US $31.4 billion) in 2007.
About FIRST
Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people. Based in Manchester, N.H., FIRST designs accessible, innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while motivating young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and engineering. With the support of many of the world's most well-known companies, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST Robotics Competition and FIRST Tech Challenge for high-school students, the FIRST LEGO® League for children 9-14 years old, and the Junior FIRST LEGO League for 6 to 9 year-olds. To learn more about FIRST, go to www.usfirst.org.
For further information, please contact:
Alan Hayashi, BAE Systems
Tel: +1 808 441 2593 Mobile +1 808 255 6699
alan.hayashi@baesystems.com
Shannon Smith, BAE Systems
Tel: +1 703 907 8257 Mobile: +1 703 967 3854
shannon.n.smith@baesystems.com
