MOD engagement with trade associations

Trade associations are funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry, and many operate on a not-for-profit basis. Their activities are focused on enhancing the profile of their industry sector, which includes driving innovation, influencing policy debates, and supporting the supply chain and business development, often with a focus on small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

MOD has regular engagement with trade associations, details of which can be found below.

Team Defence

Team Defence collaborate securely across the defence enterprise to achieve end-to-end delivery of materiel and services, including support through-life. Team Defence is holistic and includes users (for example, the MOD, Allies, other government departments and contractors) and industry suppliers, spanning multinational prime-contractors and SMEs, securely collaborating across the defence supply chain and support network.

ADS

ADS represents and supports over 1,100 UK businesses operating in the aerospace, defence, security and space sectors. ADS membership ranges from SMEs to global primes.

Farnborough International Limited (FIL), which runs the Farnborough International Airshow, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ADS Group Ltd.

Make UK

Make UK Defence is a not-for-profit, member-owned defence trade association that forms part of Make UK.

Make UK Defence champion and support the UK’s innovative and diverse defence supply chain. Their mission is:

• to have a deep understanding of members and their challenges within the context of the domestic and global defence industry

• to amplify the pivotal role of the UK defence supply chain, while ensuring members’ challenges and concerns are clearly heard and acted upon across government

• to help members grow through networking and ‘Meet the Buyer’ opportunities

• to help members improve their business and operational performance through the ‘Fit for Defence’ programme

Make UK Defence are helping to build an innovative and internationally-competitive UK defence supply chain.

techUK

techUK is the UK’s leading technology membership organisation, with more than 850 members spread across the UK. They enable members to learn from each other and grow in a way that contributes to the country both socially and economically.

UKspace

UKspace is the trade association of the British space industry, representing and promoting space to government and other key stakeholders nationally and internationally.

Other trade associations

• Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)
• Farnborough Aerospace Consortium
• West of England Aerospace Consortium
• North West Aerospace Alliance
• The British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA)
• Gauge and Tool Makers Association

Related information

Procurement at MOD