Copyright © 2023 Albuquerque Journal
Sandia National Laboratories spent record-breaking amounts last fiscal year, according to its annual economic impact report.
The laboratory, headquartered in Albuquerque, spent a total of $4.2 billion in fiscal year 2022 – the first time the defense contractor surpassed $4 billion in spending. Spending increased by approximately $300 million since fiscal year 2021; over the past five years, the lab’s expenditures have increased by $1 billion.
“Every year we think it’s going to slow down – and it hasn’t,” said Scott Aeilts, associate labs director of Mission Services at Sandia, at an economic forum meeting last week.
Spending isn’t the only way that Sandia broke records last year; the lab also saw an all-time high number of employees. Last year, the labs created close to 500 new positions and hired close to 1,900 new workers for a total of 15,533 employees nationwide, up from 14,921 in fiscal year 2021. Of that number, the vast majority are employed in New Mexico, with 80.9% – or 12,581 employees – in the state. Over the past fiscal year, Sandia hired more than 1,400 new workers in New Mexico.
In addition to Sandia sites in Albuquerque and Carlsbad, New Mexico, the lab has locations in California, Texas, Nevada and Washington, D.C.
Aeilts said that this year, the labs plan to add an additional 500 jobs.
Laura Lovato, manager of Sandia’s supply division and supply chain risk management, said that, while record-breaking, this growth is typical for the lab. Since 2016, the lab has added an average of 558 new employees each year; with a net increase of 632 employees this year, Sandia’s employment growth was slightly higher than normal, but not unusual.
“Each year has been a record-breaking year for at least the past three years,” Lovato told the Journal. “And we anticipate to keep growing.”
The demographics of Sandia’s employees have shifted over the past five years. Since fiscal year 2017, the contractor has increased the number of minority employees. The number of minority and female employees in management positions has also grown.
More than one in four of Sandia’s new hires over the past five years have relocated to New Mexico, bringing in approximately 1,800 new residents to the state. However, New Mexico university graduates are still highly represented in Sandia’s workforce, with almost 40% of employees holding a degree from a state school.
It has also put an emphasis on contracting with small businesses. Of the $4.2 billion in spending, almost a half billion dollars went to subcontracts in New Mexico. More than $419 million, or the vast majority of the $482,836,000 spent on subcontracts in the state, went to small businesses, in industries including computer facility management systems, engineering and construction
Lovato told the Journal that while federally-funded Sandia is obligated to contract with a certain number of small businesses, it’s also a win-win for the contractor.
“It makes good business sense as well from a community perspective,” Lovato said. “That’s because we need a diverse supplier base to meet our mission needs. When we acquire products and services, we want to make sure we can drive some innovation, different ideas to help us meet those needs. And so small business is part of that supplier diversity.”
Sandia uses guidelines from the Small Business Administration to identify which companies can be classified as small businesses. The standards for small businesses can vary based on industry.
Enduring supply chain issues have complicated the contracting process, Lovato said. But by partnering with different agencies, Lovato said that Sandia will continue to adapt and grow despite the difficulties.
“We’re just constantly trying to understand supply chain as a whole, because they’ve been so challenging the past couple of years since COVID,” Lovato said. “It’s evolving quickly, so we’re partnering to make sure we can do so in a safe and secure manner, while still trying to make sure we can meet small business goals.”
