Throughout our #SMEsuccess campaign we’ve focussed on how companies across the UK can benefit from the initiatives implemented by the industrial strategies.

This blog focuses on explaining what these initiatives are and how they work.

Aerospace Growth Partnership

 

Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI)

  • The ATI was established as a collaboration between Government and industry; to create the UK’s aerospace technology strategy, advising and challenging the sector through £3.9 billion of R&T investment, to ensure the UK retains its global competitive position.
  • The ATI strategically reviews a company’s funding application to shape projects and the ATI portfolio to optimise the commercial impact of the funding. This ensures a company’s product/service addresses recognised gaps in the market, developing the product offering and improving its competitiveness.

21st Century Supply Chains (SC21)

  • SC21 is a change programme designed to accelerate the competitiveness of the aerospace & defence industry by raising the performance of its supply chains.
  • SC21 accreditation is a recognised award amongst industry Primes, setting suppliers apart from competitors, demonstrating that they can deliver to a consistent high standard.
  • By following the SC21 framework, companies can benefit from closer relationships with Primes, reduction of lead times, reduced cost of re-work, improved delivery performance, reduced inventory and improved relationships with customers.

Sharing in Growth (SiG)

  • SiG, set up in 2013, is set to deliver a £250M programme of intensive supplier development over four years to 64 UK suppliers.
  • It is an intense, whole company transformation programme with a team of specialists delivering on-the-job training to all levels of staff, holistically addressing every aspect of a business.
  • SiG enables companies to assess their strategic position; set targets and optimise production and engineering processes which improves overall efficiency; and decide where best to invest to improve capabilities, such as new technology.
  • The first cohort of 25 companies have already secured more than £1 billion of total contract value through improved competitiveness.

National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP):

  • NATEP is a £40m technology programme aimed at small and medium sized suppliers to help them develop their own innovative technologies to enhance their capabilities and increase their ability to win new business with higher tier companies anywhere in the world.
  • 74 percent of NATEP projects are located outside London and the South East.
  • This programme enables companies to accelerate technology to bring it to market, sometimes funding a company project that may not have come to fruition without NATEP.

 

Defence Growth Partnership

 

The UK Defence Solutions Centre (UKDSC)

  • The UKDSC is the centralised coordinating and strategic planning function for industry, working to make the UK defence industry more successful in exports. The centre identifies innovative and world-beating products and services that meet the needs of customers around the globe.
  • Companies can access the UKDSC expertise and established overseas relationships to ensure a product or service is in the best position to reach international markets.
  • By working with the UKDSC, companies increase their visibility in sometimes difficult to reach markets with opportunities to showcase projects at marketplace events.
  • UKDSC can introduce companies to industry contacts as well as new projects that have been identified by the centre.

UKDSC Innovation Challenge

  • The UKDSC Innovation Challenge is a set of Ministry of Defence funded competitions to find innovative technology to solve defence challenges. The challenges have been created to target opportunities and gaps in the UK defence market.
  • Receiving funding to develop new technologies and products for this competition can enable companies to create new product streams, access to new markets and increased exposure to potential customers.

Dual-Use Technology Exploitation (DUTE)

  • The DUTE programme aims to strengthen and boost UK economic growth by harnessing a UK community of innovative SMEs, Universities and leading UK Industry partners, identifying the best technologies from defence and civil sectors and ensuring they are put to dual-use in adjacent sectors.
  • Participating companies can benefit from collaborating with leading academics and industry representatives on projects to enhance current, or create new, products.
  • Products created as part of the DUTE programme will have viability in many other markets, opening up to a wealth of new customers in new markets.

Click here to read about the companies benefitting from the above initiatives.