Report highlights UK defence supply chain difficulties for SMEs

13th July 2021 - 17:00 GMT | by Gerrard Cowan in Belfast

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Smaller companies can face difficulties gaining access to prime contractors on major programmes. (Photo: UK MoD)

A report commissioned by the UK MoD from RAND Europe has shed new light on the problems faced by companies below Tier One in the defence supply chain.

Mid-tier companies and SMEs in the UK defence industry face a range of productivity challenges, according to a new report from RAND Europe, including around access to the MoD and major defence primes. The report comes hot on the heels of a critical National Audit Office assessment of major programmes.

RAND Europe conducted a year-long study for the Ministry aimed at developing intervention options to support and further develop supply chains in the UK. The research organisation released its key findings in a report in early July, which outlined the ‘challenges and barriers that limit the productivity and competitiveness

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Gerrard Cowan

Gerrard Cowan is an author having recently published his world-renowned book 'The Machinery'. He …

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