HONOLULU--(Business Wire)--
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 GBP 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(R) 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.
BAE Systems
Alan Hayashi, +1 808-441-2593
Mobile: +1 808-255-6699
alan.hayashi@baesystems.com
or
Shannon Smith, +1 703-907-8257
Mobile: +1 703-967-3854
shannon.n.smith@baesystems.com
www.baesystems.com
Copyright Business Wire 2008
