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Selex Galileo

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Selex Galileo: A Leader in Defense Systems
Amber Tucker
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University
Managerial Accounting-MGMT 517

Abstract A look inside an Italian-based, leading global defense company reveals roots dating back to discoveries made by the famous, Galileo Galilei in the 1500s. The introduction of the telescope along with the realization of Jupiter’s satellites, and speed of falling objects have been the backbone of Selex Galileo. The company exhibits a strong willingness to work alongside competitors to maintain global defense measures. The staggering 17% commitment of revenue to Research and Development make Selex Galileo a company that maintains flexibility and innovation throughout changing times and demands. Company profits of 2014 are probably well above the 2011 revenues that totaled over 3.5 billion Euros. With an ever-decreasing military budget, Selex Galileo is finding ways to continue its strides and success.

Backdrop
In the teachings of astronomy, “Galileo” is credited as the Italian astronomer and mathematician that first used a telescope to study the stars. This leap in science occurred during his lifetime, 1564-1642. He has also been credited with discovering that different weights will descend at the same rate. He perfected the refracting telescope during his lifetime. The perfecting of the telescope led to his discovery of Jupiter’s satellites, sunspots, and craters on the Earth’s moon. Because of Galileo Galilei’s advances in the area of astronomy, the United States later named a space probe to Jupiter “Galileo”, in 1989. (Galileo, n.d.)
Company Background
Selex Galileo (SG) is a subsidiary of an Italian based company called Finmeccanica. SG is a collaboration of companies. Its original company dates back to the Marconi Company founded in 1898 in the United Kingdom. “In 1946 the company was acquired by the English Electric Company, before being taken over by GEC, a leading defense contractor. Further acquisitions included Plessey (1989) with its radar and aircraft systems and Ferranti (1993), a supplier of electronics and radar. The defense activities of GEC were then acquired by British Aerospace in 1999 to form BAE Systems, and in 2005 Finmeccanica took over these activities to form a sensors and electro optics group that was named SELEX Galileo in 2008.” (History, n.d.)
A Compilation of Companies
The now “Selex Galileo” is composed of a few other companies. Former company “Sensors and Airborne Systems Limited (SELEX)” joined with BAE Systems Avionics group and Finmeccanica’s Galileo Avionica. Selex went by the names of Selex ES, Selex Elsag, and Selex Sistemi Integrati before branding into the now “Selex Galileo” signifying its partnership with the Selex companies and Finmeccanica’s Galileo Avionica S.p.A. This partnership under the consolidated name occurred in January 2010. (Shields, 2014)
Company Profile
Selex Galileo is a world leader in integrated sensor solutions. SG is a world leader in protection, targeting, surveillance, tracking, navigation and control and imaging systems. The company is Europe's third largest defense electronics business. (Selex Galileo LTD, n.d.) In 2007, SG had global revenues of 1,755 Euros. (Selex Galileo: Case Study) SG develops and markets defense electronics for electronic warfare, battlefield surveillance, communications, tracking, targeting, navigation and control, situational awareness systems and imaging systems for land, sea, air and space platforms, and applications. The United States Company of Selex Galileo is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia with operations in Mississippi, Alabama, Arizona and Georgia. (Company Overview of Selex Galileo, 2015)
Global Footprint
Selex Galileo is an international company with its core domestic operations based in Italy and the United Kingdom. It has a global footprint that extends into Australia, Brazil, Germany, India, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United States of America. (International Presence, n.d.) The United States Company specializes in providing electronic systems and solutions for US Government Agencies, the Armed Forces, and to commercial and industrial operators. Their customer base includes the Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security, law enforcement agencies, all branches of the armed forces, emergency services, municipalities, Federal Aviation Authority, railway and other public transports operators. (USA, n.d.)
Personal Knowledge of Company
In 2011, a staffing company based in Slidell, Louisiana presented me with an opportunity to work as an electrical installer/assembler for Selex Galileo located in Kiln, Mississippi. At that time, Selex Galileo used staffing companies to supply them with electrical installers and assemblers. This cut down on their hiring costs, training, insurance and labor costs. I received $10.00 per hour for about three months. During that time, I proved to be useful to the company because of my keen eye for reading schematics. I was also the only female installer within that Selex Galileo. That meant I was volunteered to install new wiring, conduct testing and general cleaning for the smallest areas inside the aircraft. I worked closely with the engineers and Selex Galileo maintenance and management staff. I, along with, one other temporary employee were offered full time permanent positions with Selex Galileo. As a veteran, the improvements Selex Galileo offered to military aircraft, sparked my interest and curiosity in the company and its potential growth opportunities.
In 2012, Selex Galileo was accumulating contracts and taking on new refurbishing projects of military aircraft. They bid on the costs they thought it would take to refurbish the aircraft. They quickly realized that they would lose quite a bit of money on the first few aircraft due to unforeseen problems with material and labor costs. I remember that the CEO, Robert Del Boca, worried that the Mississippi location would face consequences from the board of directors concerning the inherent budget losses. The supervisors constantly met with the CEO about problems with the unexpected amount of labor hours involved along with the unexpected, high material cost. They reassured the CEO that we would be able to adapt and that the next aircraft would not experience the same problems. In 2013, the Kiln, MS, location was named Industry of the Year in Hancock County, Mississippi. The award came after working with the US Coast Guard’s HC-130H Fleet. Selex Galileo installed the Seaspray 7500E Active Electronically Scanned Array (ASEA) radar that allowed for support of search and rescue and drug interdiction missions. I actually partook in the wiring, installation, and inspection of the Seaspray 7500E on two Coast Guard HC-130H aircraft. Selex also replaced the outdated cockpits in the military C-130 fleet as well as the installation of an Electronic Propeller Control System (EPCS). (Spotlight: SELEX Galileo Inc. Named Industry of the Year in Hancock County, Mississippi, 2013)
Products
Selex Galileo expands its reach into the following sectors; Airborne and Space Systems, Land and Naval Systems, Security and Smart Systems, and Innovation. SG invests 17.5% of annual revenues into Research and Development. SG is a leader with its strides in development of tactical ISTAR systems, C4I infrastructures, electronic warfare equipment and mission critical systems for situational awareness, self-protection, wide-area surveillance and information dissemination. (The Power of One, 2014)
Competitors
Selex Galileo has proven to be a flexible company, by its constant adapting to its customer needs. The company chooses to work alongside its competitors and sign multiple joint agreements to meet customer needs. However, the fusion of the multiple Selex companies into SG combatted the problem of competition. The CEO of the entire Selex Galileo, Fabrizio Giulianini, decided to eliminate that issue of competition. The new company of Selex Galileo can now develop stronger central organizations for engineering and manufacturing. (Sweetman, 2013) A major competitor of SG is Northrop Grumman. The leaders in both companies realize the need and potential opportunities that exist with a partnering for contracts together.

Partnerships The partnership with Northrop Grumman allowed the companies to work together to produce a laser-based infrared (IR) countermeasures solution against current and future IR threat systems. Selex offered its twenty years of experience and current “ECLIPSE pointer tracker” to protect Army helicopters for the latest generations of missiles. The already in-place helicopters were produced by Northrop Grumman. The partnership allowed for both companies to work toward protection of assets and people while growing their name and revenue. (Hamilton, 2009) The companies continue their work together with Northrop Grumman awarding 12% of their NATO contract to Selex Galileo in 2012. The subcontract allows SG to supply the electronic systems for NATO’s alliance ground surveillance program (AGS). The terms of the deal provide that SG will provide fixed mission operational support and transportable general ground station components for the ground-based element of the AGS. (Northrop awards Nato AGS subcontract to Selex, 2012) Selex Galileo does not partner with only Northrop Grumman. SG has partnered with Saab in a successful effort to produce an active electronically scanned array fire control radar installed in the Raven ES-05, also in 2012. (SELEX Galileo Raven ES-05 AESA Radar Flies Into Farnborough in the Gripen NG, 2012) These partnerships have allowed for the over 150 years of success for this Finmeccanica company.
Visions, Missions, Values One hundred and fifty years of success are dependent on the values made mandatory within the company. Selex Galileo has a vision of aspiration, “Becoming the benchmark for our Clients and Partners in delivering technological excellence in electronic systems and solutions for a safer, smarter society.” The mission is their objective. It is “To be a leading trans-national business with an international Customer base, providing our Clients with reliable, affordable and operationally superior electronic system solutions while delivering sustainable growth and long-term value to our Shareholders and Stakeholders.” Their values seek to reflect on their business profile. They include respect, innovation, integrity, customer intimacy, and people excellence. To better embed these business values, Selex Galileo has adopted Finmeccanica’s leadership competencies of value creation, market and customer orientation, achieving excellence in performance, human capital development, business awareness, collaboration and international orientation, and innovation and change management. Selex Galileo expects all of its leadership to exhibit competencies in each of those areas. (Vision, Mission, Values, 2013)
Company Financials In 2010, Selex Galileo collected millions in each of its sectors of specialization to cumulatively bring a multi-billion dollar profit. The revenue listed is in Euros. The Aeronautics division earned 2,809 million. The Helicopters division earned 3,664 million. The Space division earned 925 million. The Defense & Security Electronics division earned 7,137 million. The Defense Systems division earned 1,210 million. The Energy division earned 1,413 million and the Transportation division earned 1,962 million. They collected over 19 billion Euros in revenue while investing 2 billion back into research and development. In 2010, they employed 75,197 workers. Sixty percent of its employees are engineers or specialists with an average length of service of nineteen years. (McRobbie, 2011)

Annual Report 2011 The annual report produced by Finmeccanica in 2011 explained, in detail, the reasons for growth or lack of growth in each division. One of the divisions that contributed to the lack of growth was Helicopters. This was attributable to the delay, until 2012, in certain important government contracts which had been expected in the first half of 2011; the same period of the previous year also benefited from significant orders totaling €mil. 1,500. Defense and Security Electronics was a division that contributed to a lack of growth, which in the first half of 2010 received major orders for the third lot of the EFA program, as well as significant orders from the US Army by DRS. However, delays in the approval of the US defense budget have had an effect on DRS in relation to orders from the US Army. Another division was Transportation, and this was due to fewer new orders in the vehicles segment, which benefited in 2010 from the order from Trenitalia for 50 high-speed trains as part of the temporary joint venture with Bombardier. (Annual Report 2011, 2012) The lack of growth in those divisions was offset by the Energy division. This was due to important new orders in the plants and components segment, especially for an 800 MW combined-cycle plant located in Gebze, Turkey during the first quarter and for two open-cycle plants (total 550 MW) in Algeria (Ain Djasser II and Labreg) in the third quarter. The Aeronautics division growth also helped. This was due to more orders in the civil segment. Other activities benefited largely due to the receipt of new orders by Fata. Revenues at 31 December 2011 came to €mil. 17,318, compared with €mil. 18,695 in 2010, for a decrease of €mil. 1,377. This was shown on the Net Profit (Loss) Statement. (Annual Report 2011, 2012)
Activity Based Costing Within activity accounting exists activity based costing. Activity Based Costing (ABC) is “a two-stage procedure used to assign overhead costs to products or services produced. In the first stage, significant activities are identified, and overhead costs are assigned to activity cost pools in accordance with the way resources are consumed by the activities. In the second stage, the overhead costs are allocated from each activity cost pool to each product line in proportion to the amount of the cost driver consumed by the product line.” (Ronald W. Hilton, 2014) The ABC works best in a manufacturing setting. Selex Galileo would not benefit from ABC due to their constantly changing products and reliance on expanding services. However, Selex Galileo could benefit from the concept of activity accounting to allow a way of the operations within its company.
Standard Costs There are a number of ways to manage costs. This controlling or managing of costs has three basic parts: a standard cost, an actual performance, and a comparison of the two. This system works like a thermostat. “First, a predetermined or standard cost is set.” To more fully explain standard cost, I will use the book’s definition. “Standard cost is a predetermined cost for the production of goods or services that serves as a benchmark against which to compare the actual cost.” Standard costing works when a company plans to produce multiple units, using the unit cost to determine a total standard or budgeted cost of production. (Ronald W. Hilton, 2014) Again, since Selex Galileo does not specifically produce certain products, standard cost analysis would not be beneficial for the company.

Relevant Cost with Future Projects
Businesses could analyze future projects based on relevant costs. Relevant Cost is a “managerial accounting term that is used to describe costs that are specific to management's decisions. The concept of relevant costs eliminates unnecessary data that could complicate the decision-making process.” (Relevant Cost, n.d.) Selex Galileo should balance and analyze future projects with relevant costs. They use this to bid on contracts with their clients. Obviously, SG wants to bid under its competitors but uses that relevant range as a basis for developing their budget for future projects.
Summary
The advances Galileo Galilei made have provided a strong basic knowledge of astronomy, gravity, and of telescopes. Without the stride he made in science and technology, Selex Galileo may not exist and/or thrive now. The flexibility of the founders of the company have allowed for continual growth and improvement. The joining of multiple companies have provided a broad knowledge base for its operating specialties and made the company marketable in a time of increasing protection and technology needs. The partnerships Selex Galileo has founded and benefited from allow it to keep a competitive edge. The significant monetary commitment to research and development keep Selex Galileo with an innovative advantage. Selex Galileo’s broad range of specialties can only allow exponential continued company growth and wealth.
Conclusions
Selex Galileo will be a leader in defense systems for years to come. They will most likely continue to merge with other companies and create and cultivate partnerships with its competitors. Selex Galileo may have not had the projected revenue in year 2011, but its constant economic sustainability efforts joined with its drastic efforts to constantly innovate, have allowed for a prosperous future. The strong vision, mission and values incorporated into its day-to-day activities contributes to their huge success in low employee turnover and high customer satisfaction. I would be shocked to see a competitor arise and flourish pushing SG into inadequacy.

Reference:
Annual Report 2011. (2012, March 31). Retrieved from Finmeccanica: http://www.finmeccanica.com/documents/10437/20427055/body_Bilancio_Consolidato_2011_EN.pdf
Company Overview of Selex Galileo. (2015, March). Retrieved from Bloomberg Business: http://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=52066472
Galileo. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Free Dictionary: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Galileo
Hamilton, E. (2009, September 9). Northrop Grumman and Selex Galileo Team to Compete for US Army's Common Infrared Countermeasures Program. Retrieved from Nasdaq Global Newswire: http://globenewswire.com/news-release/2009/09/10/404368/172983/en/Northrop-Grumman-and-SELEX-GALILEO-Team-to-Compete-for-U-S-Army-s-Common-Infrared-Countermeasures-Program.html
History. (n.d.). Retrieved from Selex ES: http://www.selex-es.com/about-us/heritage
International Presence. (n.d.). Retrieved from Selex ES: http://www.selex-es.com/selex-es-worldwide
McRobbie, D. (2011, July 11). Selex Galileo. Retrieved from Selex Galileo: https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/physics/PDF_Files/careers/06DouglasMcRobbie.pdf
Northrop awards Nato AGS subcontract to Selex. (2012, July 16). Retrieved from Army-Technology: http://www.army-technology.com/news/newsnorthrop-awards-nato-ags-subcontract-selex
Relevant Cost. (n.d.). Retrieved from Investopedia: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/relevantcost.asp
Ronald W. Hilton, D. E. (2014). Managerial Accounting: Creating Value in a Dynamic Business Environment (10 ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Selex Galileo LTD. (n.d.). Retrieved from Practice: http://www.practice-fp7-security.eu/cms,article,42,selex-galileo-ltd.html
SELEX Galileo Raven ES-05 AESA Radar Flies Into Farnborough in the Gripen NG. (2012, July 6). Retrieved from Defense-Aerospace: http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/136692/boeing-wins-$500m-to-close-down-c_17-line.html
Selex Galileo: Case Study. (n.d.). Retrieved from Invest Essex: http://www.investessex.co.uk/uploads/studies/IE_Selex_Galileo.pdf
Shields, M. (2014). Galileo 166 Success Secrets-Most Asked Questions-What You Need to Know. Emereo Publishing.
Spotlight: SELEX Galileo Inc. Named Industry of the Year in Hancock County, Mississippi. (2013, August 26). Retrieved from Selex Galileo: http://www.selexgalileo.com/-/industry-of-the-year
Sweetman, B. (2013, April 22). Finmeccanica Rebuilds Selex For Global Markets. Retrieved from Aviation Week: http://aviationweek.com/awin/finmeccanica-rebuilds-selex-global-markets
The Power of One. (2014, April). Retrieved from Selex Galileo: http://www.selexgalileo.com/documents/3309611/22860614/SEL_ES_Broch_2014_150_ENGL_160414.pdf
USA. (n.d.). Retrieved from Selex ES: http://www.selex-es.com/international-presence/usa
Vision, Mission, Values. (2013). Retrieved from Selex ES: http://www.selex-es.com/about-us/vision-mission-values

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...Astronomy Notes: People & Accomplishments: Plato (428/7 B.C.E. – 328/7 B.C.E.) – Greek Philosopher, a student of Socrates, and teacher of Aristotle. Taught of the “World of Forms;” the idea that the material world (the earth) is made of nothing but imperfect copies of what was imagined to be perfect. Also, the perfect World of Forms (heavens) was where ideas, thoughts, concepts, imagination, reason, etc. exists. The seven planets ((in order; Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn) were intangible gods; therefore, they were part of the World of Forms. Plato taught that when people acted on perfect ideas (i.e., built stuff), the outcome, in the material world, must be imperfect. [Socrates taught of metaphysics, the study of what is real versus what we think is real but isn’t.] Aristotle (384 B.C.E. – 322 B.C.E.) – Greek philosopher and mathematician and a student of Plato. Credited when the early teaching of the scientific method (questioning, predicting outcomes, classifying/ organizing data, drawing conclusions founded in logic). Aristotle taught of the Universe existing in two realms. The Terrestrial Realm consisted of all material objects. All material objects, or matter, were made of combinations of the four elements (earth, air, fire, and water). Matter was classified by common physical properties (density, hot vs. cold, wet vs. dry). Comets were thought to be atmospheric phenomena, and part of the Terrestrial Realm (changes in the tail of a comet...

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...discoveries of the universe changed are whole views on it. Galileo was an Italian physicist, mathematician, engineer, astronomer, and philosopher who was a key part the scientific revolution during the Renaissance. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and observations that gave support for Copernicanism, for which affected mainly the church. For most think of him as a great man to this day, but at the time he was considered a man of heresy by the church of his ideas. So to ask the question if Galileo was truly a great person or a product of his age you have to look back to how he affected history. For he is now known for many things and for that they can...

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...Brief: Galileo Galilei, a professor in mathematics, was born on February 15, 1564, in Pisa, Italy. Born on February 15, 1564, in Pisa, Italy, Galileo Galilei was a mathematics academic who created pioneering observations of nature with lasting implications for the study of physics. He additionally made a telescope and supported the Copernican theory, that supports a sun-centered solar system. Galileo Galilei was accused two times of heresy by the church for his beliefs, and wrote books on his concepts. He died in Arcetri, Italy, on January 8, 1642. His Beginnings: He was the first of six kids to Vincenzo Galilei, an outstanding performer and music scholar, and Giulia Ammannati. In 1574, the family moved to Florence, where Galileo began his formal teaching at the Camaldolese religious community in Vallombrosa. In 1583,...

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