Saft, the designer and manufacturer of high‐tech industrial batteries, is thrilled to announce that it has attained top recognition from Raytheon Network Centric Systems (NCS), winning the Five Star Supplier Excellence Award for the second consecutive year. This achievement marks the sixth year in a row that Saft has been acknowledged by Raytheon as a Supplier of Excellence.

“We are so proud to be presented with this top distinction once again, and we are equally honored to have been recognized every year since Raytheon implemented the program in 2006,” said Frank Rosenthal, general manager of Saft’s Cockeysville, MD Space and Defense Division, who accepted the award on behalf of Saft on October 18 at the Cockeysville factory. “This is a testament to Saft’s unwavering dedication to delivering high‐quality products, on‐time, at a fair price and providing overall excellent management of the program.”

Since 2004, Saft has supplied batteries for Raytheon’s Improved Target Acquisition System (ITAS), a production program that has become the Cockeysville plant’s largest and most successful. Saft’s 28V lithium battery box powers the surveillance, target acquisition and fire control system for the U.S.

Army’s TOW missile, providing high‐quality, and reliable support for troops in the field. Saft’s Li‐ion batteries were selected because they provide a longer lifetime and have a lower life cycle cost than other chemistries. In order to achieve Five Star status, a supplier must have already received the Four Star award. Saft was the first supplier to ever receive the Five Star award.