FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TUESDAY, JULY 21, 2009

CONTACT: Steve Dolan
(619) 594-5664
sdolan@mail.sdsu.edu

San Diego, July 21, 2009 - SDSU's College of Extended Studies is pleased to announce that General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc. will host the College's two-day Value Stream Mapping (VSM) course for the upcoming fall semester. The course is a part of the Professional Certificate in Lean Enterprise program offered by the College of Extended Studies, and is open to the public.

"We want to continually improve our manufacturing operations, so we sent someone through SDSU's Lean Enterprise program in the spring and saw the value in putting more people through. We look forward to hosting the Value Stream Mapping class in the fall to help promote Lean practices within our company," said John Morris, operations manager for General Atomics Electronic Systems Inc.

The Value Stream Mapping course offers students the opportunity to observe and apply real business applications, and analyze the end-to-end processes required to deliver a product or service. The two-day VSM course provides students of the Lean Enterprise program with invaluable hands-on experience with mapping continuous improvement programs at leading Lean corporations like General Atomics.

Lean principles focus on reducing waste to increase value and improve efficiency through tools such as Value Stream Mapping. Lean principles are commonly utilized in fields such as manufacturing, logistics, software development, call center management and supply chain operations. The Professional Certificate in Lean Enterprise Program introduces students to the Lean philosophy of process management though simulations, exercises, lectures and real-world interaction/workshops.

For additional information on the Lean Enterprise program, call (619) 594-1138 or visit www.NeverStopLearning.net/Lean

San Diego-based General Atomics Electronic Systems, Inc. (GA-ESI) is comprised of five product lines involving different aspects of energy. One serves the petroleum and chemical industries, two focus on the nuclear/radiation monitoring industry, and two provide high power systems and components. The common thread of these systems technology is the design, development, and manufacture of secure and highly reliable microprocessor/PC-based control and information handling systems.

SDSU's College of Extended Studies reaches out to the greater San Diego community, the nation, and the world with a wide variety of lifelong learning classes, seminars, and certificate programs. Career advancement courses are offered in many areas of management, leadership, and quality improvement while self-enrichment courses range from astronomy to web design. Additionally, the College offers 40 certificate programs, online courses, and many other learning opportunities. For more information or to register, call (619) 265-SDSU or log on to www.NeverStopLearning.net