In more than 44 years as an independent laboratory, following its existence as Z Division of Los Alamos, Sandia has had just two management and operating contractors. The change from AT&T to Lockheed Martin management occurred October 1, 1993. This transition has been marked by continuity in the Sandia service ethos developed during nearly a half-century of what President Harry Truman called "exceptional service in the national interest." It has also been a continuation in Sandia's heritage of industrial management.

AT&T was originally requested to assume management of Sandia because of the company's parallel strengths in research and development and in manufacturing. The new lab's responsibility to the Atomic Energy Commission (one of the Department of Energy's predecessor agencies) was nuclear weapon engineering. That required a strong combination of research and industrial expertise. Sandia's role might be summarized as engineering the non-nuclear parts of nuclear weapons, producing designs and prototypes that would become military hardware. Sandia was and is the integrator of all systems that constitute a weapon, including surety systems that make the weapon safe and secure.

For this function, Sandia was deliberately modeled after AT&T Bell Laboratories. As was the practice inside the integrated structure of AT&T, Sandia's R&D activities were to be combined with the ability to create products that could be realized in production facilities. This was an “ideal” concept based upon combining science and technology with an outlook that included a strong mission focus.

In 1973, Sandia became a multiprogram R&D laboratory, and since 1979 has been a DOE national laboratory. Mission responsibilities have expanded to include defense, energy and environment, and contributions to increasing the global competitiveness of US industry.

When Lockheed Martin was selected as AT&T's successor in 1993, the same basic need remained at Sandia for a synergistic blend of research and manufacturing orientation. In addition, the end of the Cold War and other national and international shifts underscored the need for Sandia to respond to emerging responsibilities in a time when resources would be more constrained. The relationship between Sandia and its new managing contractor is affected by all these factors.

The business activities of Lockheed Martin include research, development, and manufacturing in defense, space exploration, aerospace, electronics, information management, and energy. In addition to managing Sandia, Lockheed Martin is also the management and operating contractor for another multiprogram DOE lab, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Like AT&T, Lockheed Martin manages Sandia through Sandia Corporation, formed in 1949 for the sole purpose of managing the lab. Sandia Corporation became a new major group of Lockheed Martin when the new Sandia management contract went into effect.

Sandia Corporation is managed by a Board of Directors consisting of both Lockheed Martin executives and non-affiliated individuals with expertise in areas related to Sandia's activities.

Lockheed Martin, as a corporation, is committed to preserving a strong position as a major national security contractor, while at the same time expanding its civil sector business base. This corporate stance parallels Sandia's, as Sandia's core mission remains stewardship and development of the nation's nuclear stockpile, while maintaining vital programs in energy, environment, and contributions to the nation's economic competitiveness.

Among the outreach and competitiveness activities fostered by Lockheed Martin is formation of Technology Ventures Corporation in Albuquerque. Its mission: to assist in commercialization of technologies developed by federal laboratories and universities in New Mexico.