Warship and submarine readiness boost by small British businesses

Maritime August 29, 2024

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Small British businesses are to benefit from a new warship and submarine agreement, Defence Minister Maria Eagle has announced.

The agreement, which will enhance economic growth across the UK, will also boost overall availability of the UK’s warships and submarines. It will see far greater access from the Ministry of Defence directly to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), allowing them to bid for work under a seven-year framework worth up to £850M.

The Marine Systems Transformation (MaST) programme delivers support and spares to non-combat equipment aboard UK warships and submarines, covering 180,000 different items from propulsion systems to galley equipment.

Across the framework, between a third and half of the suppliers are based outside the south of England with the majority being Midlands or North of England-based, and additional suppliers based in Scotland and Wales.

Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, Maria Eagle said: “The spares and repairs that keep our warships submarines at sea are critical, and this agreement will ensure that more British small businesses – from Southampton to Aberdeen – will be at the heart of supporting the Royal Navy.

“By backing our defence industry, we will keep the nation safe and support more than 200,000 jobs.”

These changes open the market for 39 companies to bid for work through Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) – the MOD’s procurement arm. Greater warship and submarine availability will be delivered through:

Improved access to spare parts, both for planned and unplanned maintenance;
Access to specialist equipment-related technical advice and expertise globally; and
Reductions in cost without compromising safety or availability.

The Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, Maria Eagle, announced the new agreement on a visit in Birmingham, to Somers Forge – manufacturer of bespoke naval parts and one of several businesses based in the Midlands that can bid for work under the new framework.

Managing Director of Somers Forge, Samson Folkes said: “Being selected for the MAST framework represents a huge opportunity for our business. We have been a defence supplier since 1912 and are incredibly proud of our heritage supporting the Royal Navy. For Somers Forge, winning contracts through MAST can help us sustain vital jobs and apprenticeships in the Midlands as well as underpin our growth ambitions.

MaST allows direct access to SME suppliers to deliver value for money for the taxpayer and to drive economic growth through defence industry organisations of all sizes across the UK.”

Toni Gray, Navy Acquisition, Equipment Support Programmes Director, said: “The MaST frameworks will deliver vital spares, repairs and post design services to support the Royal Navy’s fleet of ships and submarines. The frameworks will widen our market, enable us to contract direct to SMEs, and critically, offer never seen before levels of customer choice to how we sustain our key equipments.”

Dr Simon Dakin, DG – Core at DE&S, said: “The MaST frameworks are a game-changer to spares procurement and in service support to Royal Navy warships and submarines. It brings the agility to respond to increasingly uncertain world events and meet a demanding operational schedule while driving value for money in our procurement approach to the goods and services that we just need to deliver repeatably, cost effectively and well.”

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DE&S framework MAST Navy submarine supply chain