Northrop Grumman hinting at disclosure, amongst other things

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: 35Foxtrot

There needs to be some allowance for overruns, but they need to get spending under control. We can't have more programs that start out at $55M per airframe, and end up at $110M or more per airframe.

Difficult to do when the contracts are always in jeopardy. Reagan screwed us on the F-20's. Then after developing an invisible bomber the contract was chopped due to cost per airframe. That happens when you demand new technology and only buy a few... the development cost gets amortized. Try demanding the cost free development of a supercar without guaranteeing the purchase of any quantity, only to refuse delivery on the grounds that the first units are too expensive. Then there's the loss of competitive developments like the YF-23.

Funny - they screwed us on the original flying wing too.

So I don't see how they can expect better until they start doing business the way businesses do.

a reply to: NTellect


I think they were hinting at future developments... something you would expect from any aerospace corporation.

originally posted by: DeadSeraph
a reply to: NTellect

I saw this same commercial this evening. I thought it was quite strange. Normally companies spend money on tv commercials to advertise a product, so they can make more money from the public when that same product is purchased in greater numbers. Northrop Grumman doesn't sell anything to the public, they sell products to the government. So why are they advertising to the public? Seems strange to me. It's not like they are saying "we're hiring", either.

The advertising is for PR and for stock investment.

It would help the company in the long term if common everyday investors added companies such as Northrup Grumman and Lockheed to their stock portfolios.

The PR part of it is simply to make sure the company has a good public image in the eyes of the voting public -- a public who votes for a congress who approves the spending measures that hire these companies.

originally posted by: NTellect
a reply to: Zaphod58

the first video the modeling of the craft and if you look in the reflection of the glasses we can see the craft begins to hover

The reflection is just moving because he's moving his head.

a reply to: 35Foxtrot

The way it's done makes sense. They get incentives for on budget, incentives for on time, they're allowed some slight overrun based on natural cost growth and suppliers estimates being off, and if they can show they need to change some technology there's room to change the cost.

There's a lot of money to be made post production too in support contracts and Depot maintenance contacts.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: Zaphod58
That could pretty well kill a viable project though. Unless there are contract clauses which force the prime to absorb overruns (risky on the part of the contractor). It doesn't work in the construction business and it's hard to imagine it working in something that is, in the most part, R&D.

The usual approach would be to limit markups on overruns. Reduce opportunities for profiting on change orders. The prime doesn't eat the cost, but they don't benefit either.

That's about the most sensible comment I've heard so far, even if times are tight there still needs to be room to maneuvre.