Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology opens
new Bristol office of Finmeccanica company, SELEX Systems
Integration
Bristol, 21 March 2011 – Minister for Defence Equipment, Support
and Technology, Mr Peter Luff MP, today officially opened the new
Bristol office of Finmeccanica company, SELEX Systems Integration
Ltd, and visited the company’s new state of the art Centre of
Excellence.
The building, which also acts as a Bristol base for SELEX
Systems Integration subsidiary VEGA Consulting Services Ltd, and
sister Finmeccanica company SELEX Galileo, is home to 200 dedicated
UK defence and security professionals. The building’s Centre of
Excellence developed by SELEX Systems Integration, provides
visitors with an opportunity to experience the very latest
technological innovation on offer from across the UK Finmeccanica
companies in support of the national defence and security
challenges.
Situated adjacent to the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD)’s
procurement headquarters, Abbey Wood, the office is also within
easy reach of the UK’s intelligence centre, GCHQ. Its proximity to
such key installations ensures SELEX Systems Integration and VEGA
continue to work in close partnership with the UK MOD and the
extended intelligence community to develop cost-effective
front-line capability including information superiority, cyber
security, air-defence systems, and through-life training
solutions.
Mr Luff was hosted by Marina Grossi, CEO of SELEX Sistemi
Integrati, the parent company of SELEX Systems Integration; David
Gould, Executive Chairman of SELEX Systems Integration; and Alberto
de Benedictis, Chief Executive of Finmeccanica in the UK.
On opening the office, Mr Luff congratulated SELEX Systems
Integration on its choice of location and the company’s commitment
to the defence sector as part of Finmeccanica in the UK. The
Minister said: “I am delighted to have been asked to open the new
Bristol offices of Finmeccanica Company, SELEX Systems Integration.
The success of our Defence industry is important to the UK’s
economy, and indeed the defence and security of the country and its
people. SELEX Systems Integration’s investment in Bristol, close to
the headquarters of MOD Defence Equipment and Support is a welcome
demonstration of the company’s continued commitment to the UK
Defence industry”.
CEO of SELEX Sistemi Integrati, Marina Grossi, expressed her
satisfaction with the Bristol Centre of Excellence: “The opening of
this new centre, which mirrors the successful facility already
established in the company’s headquarters in Rome, provides a
further opportunity to display the company’s capabilities in
designing and realising large systems for the civil and military
security domains. It represents a centre of technological
excellence which demonstrates to visitors how the company’s systems
capabilities can benefit a wide variety of missions.”
Executive Chairman of SELEX Systems Integration, David Gould,
thanked the Minister for officially opening the new office and
Centre of Excellence, adding: “We are extremely honoured that the
Minister has taken the time to visit our new offices and Centre of
Excellence. The location of the office and our investment in
innovation will, I believe, enable the company to continue working
closely with our defence and security clients, developing valuable
and effective solutions to support the UK’s defence and security
challenges. We look forward to welcoming many more guests visiting
us in the coming months.”
Notes to the editor:
Abbey Wood is home to the MOD’s Defence Equipment and Support
(DE&S) community. The facility, the largest MOD site in the UK
with over 7,000 people, was opened in 1996 as a base for the MOD’s
procurement executive departments. The DE&S staff manage
procurement for the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air
Force.
Finmeccanica is a world-leading technology
company, operating globally in the aerospace, and defence and
security markets. With an international workforce of over 73,000
people and revenues in excess of €18 billion, Finmeccanica is one
of the foremost suppliers of helicopters, aircraft, aeronautics and
defence systems, as well as a European leader in space, security,
resilience, transportation and power generation solutions. With
over 10,000 employees in the UK operating from 10 major sites
across the country, Finmeccanica is currently the UK MOD’s second
largest defence equipment supplier.
SELEX Sistemi Integrati, a Finmeccanica
company, designs and develops Large Systems for Homeland
Protection, systems and radar for air defence, battlefield
management, naval warfare, air traffic control, coastal and
maritime surveillance. Fifty years of experience in system
integration have created a customer base in no less than 150
countries. SELEX Sistemi Integrati has complete mastery of the
advanced technologies involved – the company’s true wealth and
expertise – as well as an extensive commercial offer of
state-of-the-art solutions and products, backed up by full logistic
support. With about 4,500 employees and plants in Italy, the UK,
Germany and the USA, SELEX Sistemi Integrati is a leader in
research and development thanks to annual investments amounting to
20% of the production value.
SELEX Systems Integration is a dedicated
Solution Architect and Systems Integration business, and the UK
subsidiary of SELEX Sistemi Integrati SpA. It manages the delivery
of technology investment programmes in complex operational and
safety-critical environments. The company currently provides Post
Design Services (PDS) in support of the UK MOD’s fleet of over 40
Operational Watchman
Radars. Additionally, the company supports through-life
training solutions for UK platforms such as Eurofighter Typhoon,
Apache Attack Helicopter, and Titan and Trojan. As part of the UK
Thales team, the company is delivering the training solution for
the WATCHKEEPER TUAV programme. SELEX Systems Integration is also a
member of the joint MOD / Industry CBRN Transformation
programme.
VEGA Consulting Services, a SELEX Systems
Integration subsidiary, is a professional services company that
delivers technology-enabled change in complex environments, often
where security and resilience are key. The company has over 20
years’ experience delivering secure communication and information
systems across the military and extended intelligence community.
This domain knowledge and technological expertise positions VEGA as
a trusted partner for the most demanding cyber security and
information assurance challenges both across Government and at the
front-line. The company is currently providing support to UK forces
in Afghanistan and the MOD organisations that provide information
superiority services.
Further information
For further information, please contact either: