Taking flight for defence

Aerospace Manufacturing takes a look ahead at DSEI, one of the world’s biggest military equipment exhibitions held in London, and its focus on the future of aerospace defence development this year.

Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) brings together senior international trade and military experts from across the entire supply chain in what is described by organisers as “an optimal business environment”.

This year the biennial event, held at London’s ExCeL Centre, will take place from 10-13 September and as DSEI marks its 20th year the show will feature its strongest aerospace offering ever, including fixed, rotary wing and unmanned platforms. The DSEI Aerospace Zone, supported by the RAF, includes a variety of static displays alongside numerous supply chain exhibitors.

The RAF’s Aerospace Capability Conference will be a main feature with its presence on the DSEI exhibition floor. As the RAF fleet evolves there is a constant need to understand the future of air systems, including the role of air power, in information-led and increasingly competitive and complex operational environments.

With fifth generation aircraft such as the F-35 now entering its fleet, the RAF is looking at how it can deliver the ‘Next Generation Air Force’. The Aerospace Capability Conference will consider if the generational approach is still appropriate, or whether there is space for a new, ‘continuous evolution’ approach, whereby innovation can be seeded within a Next Generation Air Force, driven by technology-forward thinking and empowered individuals.

Attendees at the Aerospace Capability Conference can see international, high-level speakers share their thoughts on the future battlespace and the challenges of a multi-domain combat environment. Critically, the conference will reinforce the need for close collaboration between the RAF and its industrial partners to maintain its advantage in the next generation of aircraft.

The Aerospace Capability Conference 2019 will be delivered on Day Zero (Monday 9th September) in partnership with the Royal Air Force under the theme ‘Delivering the Next Generation Air Force’. Topics covered under this theme will include: Combat Air: Maximise our effects; Air C2/ISR: Information at the speed of relevance; Space: Coalition warfighting and A2AD; and Dominance in a contested and degraded operational environment. These discussions will continue throughout DSEI in dedicated seminars on the exhibition floor.

As part of this exploration of the next generation air force, the RAF will also demonstrate its future sixth-generation stealth fighter aircraft with its Team Tempest industry partners in the Aerospace Zone.

Familiar aerospace participants on the exhibition floor will include Airbus, Babcock International Group, BAE Systems, Bombardier and Raytheon, alongside a variety of other international companies demonstrating and displaying their latest offerings to the sector.

DSEI’s Aerospace Zone will also feature its popular Aerospace Seminar on Tuesday 10th to Friday 13th September, featuring high-level military and industry speakers including the Chief of the Air Staff.

Air Chief Marshall, Sir Stephen Hiller comments: “The operational environment is likely to become increasingly complex, contested and degraded, so the RAF must plan and deliver air and space effects, synchronised and integrated with cyber and information activities, in support of defence outputs. To meet this challenge, we must become a Next Generation Air Force: it is a journey and not a destination. DSEI is an excellent opportunity to explore this journey alongside our international and industry partners and to ensure that we embrace innovative and disruptive ideas along the way.”

A space for Space

For the first time, DSEI 2019 will also see a specialist Space Hub, where exhibitors can display their innovative products and services being used by the ever-expanding space aspect of the defence sector. Exhibitors include Teledyne e2v, who will be looking to boost the profile of its image sensors built in Chelmsford and flying on the majority of Earth observation programmes currently in space. Also present will be Oxford Space Systems, who recently won a £1 million Government Technology Grant from the MoD for its wrapped-rib antenna development.

One of the biggest companies showcasing its Space industry capabilities will be Airbus.

Colin Paynter, managing director, Airbus Defence and Space UK, says: “We’re delighted to be returning to DSEI for the first time since 2015. The Space Hub will be the perfect showcase for our Skynet military satellite communications and Earth observation capabilities. We’re looking forward to demonstrating some of the sovereign technologies that sit at the heart of the UK’s world-leading space sector.”

The space sector has grown substantially over the past few years. In the UK it supports over 40,000 jobs across the country and the total income now stands at £14.8 billion. DSEI’s comprehensive conference programme will also reflect this emphasis on space with a dedicated day in the Aerospace Seminar.

Industry opportunities

Of particular interest to subcontractors involved in the aerospace defence industry will be a new DSEI Manufacturing Hub, which will provide an opportunity for suppliers to penetrate the defence sector and strengthen relationships within the industry, including with the prime contractors that rely on their skills and technology to deliver complex equipment programmes. The new Hub will be sponsored by the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), a UK organisation established to bridge the gap between university-based research and the development of innovative manufacturing solutions, in line with the Government’s manufacturing strategy. The MTC is part the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, supported by Innovate UK.

Andy Barnes, associate director for defence and security at the MTC says: “We are delighted to sponsor the Manufacturing Hub at DSEI 2019 and look forward to showcasing how we can help the defence sector and its supply chain modernise processes, generate efficiencies and improve productivity through new technology.”

The Manufacturing Hub will include industry leaders in areas including: CAD/CAM software; electronic components; additive manufacturing; turning; milling and machining; connectors and cables and high precision pressing.

It will also provide a dedicated space for UK manufacturers to exhibit and showcase their capabilities and meet with potential new clients and market players from among the more than 35,000 visitors and 4,000+ system engineers/designers that are expected to take part in the DSEI event. Exhibitors will also be able to benefit from focussed networking events with subcontractors, buyers, system integrators, and designers from Tier 1, Tier 2, and OEMs.

Grant Burgham, DSEI event director concludes: “The Manufacturing Hub will be the perfect platform to create opportunities and connections between different sectors of the manufacturing world and the defence industry. As we celebrate DSEI’s 20th anniversary, this new feature is testimony that the event is dedicated to the whole of the defence industry and to creating new opportunities for all tiers of the supply chain.”