15 Apr 2007
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Mike Mercer, head of procurement
Frontline magazine - April 2007
Military Air Solutions' development of a partnering agreement with the UKMinistry of Defence (MOD) could involve hundreds of defence suppliers in helping to transform supply chain relationships and the delivery of the required military capability to the front line.
The MAS procurement team recently used the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) conference in Manchester to raise awareness of its plans for involving suppliers in the LTPA driven transformation. SBAC is the UK's national trade association representing companies supplying civil air transport, aerospace defence, homeland security and space and was the ideal starting point for the new campaign.
Mike Mercer, head of procurement for LTPA, said: "The Defence Industrial Strategy sent out a challenge to industry to help support the front line, develop through-life capability management solutions and deliver value for money to the tax payer. The MOD and BAE Systems have established dedicated teams todevelop an LTPA and drive that activity.
"Over the coming months we will be engaging closely with our key suppliers to identify how we can further transform the supply chain and build upon the SBACSC21 foundations - sustaining industrial capability and delivering value for money to the customer while giving MAS and suppliers a sustainable business with the opportunity to make profit. "He added: "We'll also be asking the regional enter-prise agencies to help us make contact with their local aerospace suppliers at an earlier stage than we could do alone. BAE Systems currently has contracts with around 1,600 suppliers." Mike believes that discussing the issues that affect business relationships will pay dividends for both sides."We'll talk and we'll listen to suppliers - the feed backwill be important in helping shape the LTPA and the transformation plans. Events such as the SBAC conference are helping us to spread the net wider, and make contact with a broad range of suppliers with whom we may work in the future."
Mike Mercer,
Head of Procurement - LTPA
