Projects

KEY PROJECTS VITAL TO THE FUTURE SUSTAINABILITY AND BUSINESS GROWTH WITHIN THE AEROSPACE SECTOR

WEAF continually seeks to deliver and support key projects vital to the future sustainability and growth of the aerospace sector, both nationally and in the South West.

Projects are normally either part of the national Aerospace Growth Partnership strategy and agenda, focusing on Technology, Skills, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain Competitiveness, or can be part of Local Enterprise Partnerships funded activities, which WEAF helps to align with the national aerospace strategy.

Currently, WEAF collaborates within the Federation, consisting of ADS and the other Regional Aerospace Alliances to deliver two specific projects in the South West –  Supply Chains for the 21st Century (SC21) and the National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP).


National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme

The Aerospace Growth Partnership developed NATEP 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.

 


ACCESS

Accelerating Cross-sector Collaborative Ecosystems and Sustainable Supply-chains

The ACCESS programme aims to launch a cross-sector, SME focused supply-chain collaboration digital marketplace that will enable B2B tendering and collaboration. Establishing a freemium smart manufacturing app-store that will drive SME engagement and incentivise users to maintain profile data, connect with other network users and drive collaboration.

ACCESS will accelerate development of UK sustainable transport supply-chain by redeploying skilled labour and plant capacity of ‘at-risk’ aero/auto suppliers.

The program is being led by Valuechain Technology, partnered by the West of England Aerospace Forum, Tricorn Systems, Rail Forum and the North East Automotive Alliance.

Resources

News and Posts

Somerset Council: Doing Business With Us

The following excerpt was originally published on somerset.gov.uk, Somerset Council spends over £300 million each year on procuring and commissioning a wide range of services, goods and works. It is our responsibility to use this money in the best possible way to...

Strategic Defence Review 2025: WEAF Response

Colin Turner, CEO of WEAF, commented: “WEAF welcomes the publication of the 2025 Strategic Defence Review (SDR). The SDR outlines a bold shift towards rapid, innovation-driven transformation of UK defence. It emphasises a wartime pace of innovation, with increased...

West of England to benefit from recent trade deals

Three trade deals agreed by the UK Government in recent weeks will benefit manufacturing that accounts for around 5% of all employment in the West of England.   Reducing India’s tariffs on machinery, reducing the US tariff on cars and removing American tariffs on UK...