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27 Sept 24. UK Defence supply chain bolstered to support armed forces. A semiconductor factory has been acquired by Ministry of Defence in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, boosting UK defence capabilities.
The UK’s Armed Forces will be further bolstered as a crucial supply chain to UK defence has been secured today, after the government acquisition of a key semiconductor factory in the north-east.
Defence Secretary John Healey visited the site today, which is the only secure facility in the UK with the skills and capability to manufacture gallium arsenide semiconductors. These types of specialist semiconductors are used in a number of military platforms, including to boost fighter jet capabilities.
This acquisition will not only safeguard the future of the facility, which is critical to the defence supply chain and major military programmes and exports, but also secures up to 100 skilled jobs in the North East.
Semiconductors are vitally important for the modern world we live in, being an essential component for the functioning of almost every electronic device we use, from phones and computers to ventilators and power stations. The importance of semiconductors to military applications means the technology can allow the military to fill the gaps to support their future needs.
The announcement comes ahead of the Investment Summit next month which will make clear that the UK is “open for business” as the UK government resets relations with trading partners around the globe and creates a pro-business environment that supports innovation and high-quality jobs at home and supports our mission to deliver growth.
The acquisition will also boost UK defence industrial capacity and exports, as the government intends to invest in the company over the coming years.
On the visit, the Defence Secretary welcomed the acquisition and spoke to staff directly.
Defence Secretary John Healey said: “Semiconductors are at the forefront of the technology we rely upon today, and will be crucial in securing our military’s capabilities for tomorrow. This acquisition is a clear signal that our government will back British defence production. We’ll protect and grow our UK Defence supply chain, supporting North East jobs, safeguarding crucial tech for our Armed Forces and boosting our national security. The semiconductor factory in Newton Aycliffe has been acquired by the government from its previous parent company Coherent Inc and will be named Octric Semiconductors UK.”
This strategic investment will ensure the facility is capable of producing gallium arsenide semiconductors as well as more powerful semiconductors in the future, which will include the latest technology.
Over a trillion semiconductors are manufactured each year, with the global semiconductor market forecast to reach a total market size of $1 trillion by 2030. Semiconductors also underpin future technologies, such as artificial intelligence, quantum and 6G.
This government recognises the strategic importance of semiconductors as a critical technology for the future of the UK and a significant enabler of the government’s growth and clean energy missions.
Work has already started to implement best practice governance that will ensure appropriate financial oversight to secure the company’s future success. (Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
26 Sept 24. Howard Wheeldon’s legacy created by Nick Watts. The Commentary series which Howard Wheeldon began in 1993 became a must read for everybody in the aerospace and defence world. With the agreement of Howard’s family, the Commentary series has been revived by Nick Watts. It is hoped that this new Commentary will be as trenchant as its predecessor. An independent commentary on the aerospace and defence sector is needed in these turbulent times, and Nick will be drawing on over 20 years of experience in this arena, to inform and challenge assumptions and pre-conceived opinions! He invites comment and feedback to
BATTLESPACE will work with Nick to support and grow Howard’s legacy.
26 Sept 24. Defence minister seeks legal advice amid fears Royal Navy ships will be built in Spain.
Ministers review £1.6bn deal’s terms as Spanish giant becomes frontrunner to buy Harland & Wolff
Labour ministers have sought legal advice about a £1.6bn Royal Navy shipbuilding contract as the struggling British company hired for the work faces a Spanish takeover.
Belfast-based Harland & Wolff, which built the Titanic, was hired alongside Navantia, a Spanish state-owned shipbuilding giant, to build three Navy vessels but Harland’s decision to call in administrators last week has plunged the project into crisis.
John Healey, the Defence Secretary, and his team have asked civil servants to provide legal advice about the terms of the shipbuilding contract as the Ministry of Defence examines options for the fleet solid support (FSS) programme, a Government-initiated plan to supply more Navy support vessels.
Harland is scrambling to find a potential buyer after calling in administrators, with Navantia seen as the frontrunner. Amid the turmoil, Admiral Sir Ben Key, the First Sea Lord, flew out to Cadiz two weeks ago for talks with Navantia executives.
However, unions are concerned that the Spanish company is interested in Harland’s Belfast yard alone. That leaves the fate of hundreds of workers spread across its three other sites – Appledore in Devon and Methil and Arnish in Scotland – hanging in the balance.
They want the Defence Secretary to use the Government’s influence over the FSS contract to ensure any buyer of Harland takes on all four yards in an attempt to preserve jobs. Harland’s share of the deal, worth around £700m, is seen as the debt-ridden company’s most valuable asset.
Mr Healey is understood to have discussed the matter – among other issues – with representatives of the GMB union, one of his party’s most important backers, at the Labour conference in Liverpool earlier this week.
In a letter earlier this month, the union warned that any buyer should not be “allowed to cherry pick what yards or contracts they wish to save”. And the Irish Congress of Trade Unions pressed this case in a meeting with officials from the Department for Business and Trade last week.
However, it is not clear what powers ministers have to interfere directly in the sales process. In theory, the appointment of administrators could entitle the Ministry of Defence to put the FSS contract back out to tender, according to the Sunday Times.
Against that backdrop, Labour ministers are understood to have quietly commissioned advice from officials on their legal options. They are understood to be prioritising the delivery of the three Navy ships, which are meant to supply Britain’s aircraft carriers with stores and munitions from the early 2030s, on time and on budget.
Ministers are said to be focused on ensuring that national shipbuilding capacity would be preserved and that work promised to UK yards would be honoured.
Under the original plans, Harland & Wolff and Navantia would each have fabricated various sections of the ships, known as blocks in their respective Appledore and Cadiz yards. These blocks would then have been taken to Belfast for final assembly, with the first in class entering service in 2031 and the last by 2033.
In the first two ships, the engine, superstructure and lower cargo blocks were to be fabricated by Navantia, with the upper and mid cargo blocks and the bow made by Harland & Wolff, according to documents seen by The Telegraph. Harland & Wolff was also set to build the lower cargo section for the third and final ship, with the rest built by Navantia.
The company’s troubles moved from a slow-burning concern to full-blown crisis in July when Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, refused to underwrite a £200m restructuring loan to the firm, amid concerns taxpayers would be exposed to unacceptable risk. That triggered the exit of former boss John Wood and the appointment of caretaker managers, including restructuring expert Russell Downs.
(Source: Daily Telegraph)
23 Sept. 24. Lithuania and Northrop Grumman sign IFV ammunition pact.
Lithuania’s state-owned Giraitė Armaments Plant is also set to join the ammunition production project alongside Northrop, according to Gintarė Skaistė, Lithuania’s finance minister. Lithuania and Northrop Grumman inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today committing the US manufacturer to support local suppliers in the production of medium-caliber ammunition for Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs).
In a company statement, Northrop said that the new pact allows it to “share technologies and advanced manufacturing expertise with Lithuanian industry, consistent with United States policy.”
The firm added that helping “allies’ indigenous defense industrial capabilities is key to replenishing stockpiles and enhancing the munitions supply chains” amid demand for artillery shells spiking dramatically in response to the Ukraine war.
Lithuania shares a border with the Russian enclave Kaliningrad and has consistently supplied Ukraine with military aid over the course of the war, including 155mm ammunition, M577 armored personnel carriers, drone-jamming systems and ammunition for Carl Gustaf anti-tank recoilless rifles. Vilnius also plans on increasing defense spending in 2025 to 3 percent GDP, above the NATO target of 2 percent.
“This project [with Northrop Grumman], while also strengthening the long-standing close relationship between Lithuania and the US, will create clear value for Lithuania and for our region as a whole, which in the face of security challenges has an interest in minimising dependence on long supply chains,” said Laurynas Kasčiūnas, Lithuania’s defence minister, per Northrop’s company release.
“By integrating advanced American technologies, we are not only strengthening our national security, but also paving the way for future innovations in [the] defence industry.”
Lithuania’s state-owned Giraitė Armaments Plant is also set to join the ammunition production project alongside Northrop, according to Gintarė Skaistė, Lithuania’s finance minister.
As part of a €670m ($745m) acquisition, the Baltic state operates 89 Boxer IFVs, designated Vilkas (Wolf) in national service, the last of which were delivered at the end of 2023. Vilnius has long expressed interest in ordering an additional 120 platforms, opening negotiations with Boxer manufacturer ARTEC in 2022, but a contract has still to be signed.
The vehicles are equipped with Israel’s Rafael Samson Mk II remote controlled weapons stations and Spike LR anti-tank missiles, and Northrop-made Bushmaster MK44S 30mm chain guns.
The agreement with Northrop comes five months after Lithuania similarly signed a memorandum of intent with Germany’s Rheinmetall to open a 155mm artillery shell factory.
The future facility is set to become the first of its kind to be established under new regulations relating to the development of large-scale Lithuanian defense projects. (Source: Breaking Defense.com)
24 Sept. 24. Greece defense budget to remain in mid-1% of GDP through 2029, forecasts GlobalData. Despite the Greek government’s policy goals of reaching NATO’s 2% spending target, the country’s economic issues and political divisions are a challenge to its long-term defense spending increases and acquisition programs. As such, Greece’s defense budget is projected to remain in the mid-1% of its gross domestic product (GDP) through 2029, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
GlobalData’s latest report, “Greece Defense Market 2024-2029”, reveals that Greece’s defense budget is set to reach $9.8 bn in 2029, up from $5.5bn in 2020. The acquisition budget, which was $0.59bn in 2020, will rise significantly to $5.22bn by 2029, accounting for the majority of the budget growth. The personnel spend, which is estimated at $4.07bn in 2024, will decline slightly to $4.05bn by the end of the forecast period in 2029.
Wilson Jones, Defense Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “The largest section of Greece’s budget has historically been personnel, remaining just over $4.0bn for all historic and forecast years. This is due to Greece’s large military forces of over 200,000 uniformed members and extensive conscription system, impressive for a country with a population of around 10m. As the number of troops is not expected to grow in the forecast, the personnel spend will remain almost stable.”
Greece’s largest area of growth is its spending on acquisition, reflecting how much the government is focusing on platform modernization for its air, ground, and maritime fleets. The government’s efforts to produce many platforms domestically, either entirely or through offset agreements, means that much of spending will benefit the Greek defense industrial base and help maintain a skilled workforce for the future.
(Source: GlobalData)
24 Sept. 24. Training for armed forces recruits continues to improve but new pilots face delays. Ofsted has today published its 16th annual report on the effectiveness of care and welfare arrangements for recruits, trainees and officer cadets (OCdts).
Training has continued to improve this year with no establishments found to be inadequate. 11 of the establishments visited were graded good or outstanding and one was found to require improvement.
Read the full report: Welfare and duty of care in Armed Forces initial training 2023 to 2024
In all but one establishment, recruits, trainees and OCdts benefited from excellent or good quality training and very effective care and welfare arrangements. This means that trainees are very well prepared for their next phase of training or to start their first military job.
However, inspectors did find that trainees are spending too much time in holdover, which is where one training course has finished and another has yet to start. This is especially true for trainee pilots and aircrew – in the worst cases, trainee pilots are waiting several years to start their flying training. Trainees report that this delay affects not just their careers but their motivation and personal lives.
Where trainees must wait to start their next phase of training, all services need to ensure that trainees are engaged in meaningful activities that maintains their morale while continuing to develop their military and specialist skills.
As in previous years, inspectors continued to find problems with infrastructure and facilities. While improvements have been made the standard of trainee accommodation continues to be poor in some establishments.
Ofsted has issued several recommendations for the MoD, including:
- Urgently improve the infrastructure of the training estate, especially any accommodation where trainees are living in unacceptable and/or deteriorating conditions.
- Minimise the time that trainees spend in holdover, especially trainee pilots and aircrew from all 3 services in flying training, so that they can complete their training as quickly and efficiently as possible and start their first military jobs.
- Engage trainees in holdover in meaningful activities that maintain their morale and continue to develop their military and specialist skills and knowledge.
- Give all new recruits uniform and equipment that fit them properly, including military backpacks and body armour, so that they can participate fully in training.
Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver said: “I am delighted to present my first MoD welfare report as His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, and I am impressed with the hard work and diligence that my inspectors have seen over the last year. I congratulate commanding officers, and their staff. Military and civilian staff work hard to train and care for recruits, trainees and OCdts, sometimes despite poor infrastructure and resources. I urge senior personnel in the Ministry of Defence and in government to respond swiftly and decisively to the recommendations we have made.”
Inspectors visited 11 initial training establishments, 5 University Officers’ Training Corps (UOTC) units (in a combined inspection) and the UOTC headquarters at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
(Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
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Founded in 1987, Exensor Technology is a world leading supplier of Networked Unattended Ground Sensor (UGS) Systems providing tailored sensor solutions to customers all over the world. From our Headquarters in Lund Sweden, our centre of expertise in Network Communications at Communications Research Lab in Kalmar Sweden and our Production site outside of Basingstoke UK, we design, develop and produce latest state of the art rugged UGS solutions at the highest quality to meet the most stringent demands of our customers. Our systems are in operation and used in a wide number of Military as well as Homeland Security applications worldwide. The modular nature of the system ensures any external sensor can be integrated, providing the user with a fully meshed “silent” network capable of self-healing. Exensor Technology will continue to lead the field in UGS technology, provide our customers with excellent customer service and a bespoke package able to meet every need.
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