May 8, 2009.

Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control Camden Operations has broken ground on the construction of a 71,000 SF Integration and Recertification Facility at its Camden campus.

Lockheed Martin will create 302 new jobs with an average base wage of $49,000 and will retain another 237 jobs by moving existing employees into jobs created by new contracts utilizing the new facility – a total of 539 jobs. Lockheed Martin currently has 592 employees at its Camden Operations facilities.

The new facility will support increased international production and help the company to capture more product recertification business and facilitate the development of new products. On its Camden Operations campus, Lockheed Martin assembles the HIMARS and THAAD Launchers, GMLRS, and the PAC-3 Missile.

Speaking to a crowd of several hundred attending the groundbreaking ceremony were Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe, Camden Mayor Chris Claybaker, and Lockheed Martin executives Chris Edwards and Glenn David Woods.Over a nine year period.

In a special meeting today of the Ouachita Partnership for Economic Development, its Board of Directors awarded an industry jobs creation incentive of $211,200 to create new jobs at the facility.