Leonardo and Morson Projects extend UK engineering partnership
Morson and Leonardo
Leonardo and engineering consultancy Morson Projects have extended their 20-year partnership to secure aviation engineering skills in the north of England and Northern Ireland.
The helicopter manufacturer has agreed a long-term Strategic Partnering Agreement (SPA), which will enable Morson, to sub-contract engineering tasks. Morson Projects will manage engineering work at Leonardo’s UK helicopter facility through sub-contractors and the management of fixed-price packages across its design offices in Northern Ireland and the North of England, covering Belfast, Manchester, and Hull. This is in addition to continuing operations at Yeovil and Bristol in the south west of England.
Adam Clarke, MD, Leonardo Helicopters UK said the agreement enables Leonardo and Morson to strengthen relations between the two companies and to secure engineering work and supply chain resilience across the UK. “Furthermore, if we are successful on large contracts, like the UK MoD [Ministry of Defence] New Medium Helicopter programme, we will have a number of skills available to us to support UK prosperity and our engineering ecosystem,” said Clarke. Leonardo also awarded Morson Projects prime supplier status.
Gareth Beck, operations director, Morson Projects, said: “The Prime Supplier Status award is the culmination of many successful years of Leonardo and Morson Projects working collaboratively and is testament to the hard work, passion, and commitment of everyone involved. Morson Projects is delighted that we can continue to work with Leonardo’s industry leading products and be at the forefront of capability enhancement.”
Meanwhile, Leonardo employs more than 8,000 people in the UK and recently opened a new site in Newcastle. The manufacturer expects to employ over 200 people at the new site, generating over £185m of economic benefit in the region over the next 10 years. “The development will allow Leonardo to access talent from across the north-east of England and build closer links with small and medium-sized businesses across the region, many of which are already part of Leonardo’s nationwide supply chain,” said the company.
The manufacturer is said to be one of the biggest suppliers to the UK MoD and undertakes the onshore production of UK military helicopters and electronics on-board Royal Air Force aircraft. (Pictured are colleagues from Leonardo and Morson Projects celebrating the announcement).
