Airbus, a global leader in the aerospace industry, is expanding its UK footprint with the launch of a new base in Derby.
The company, which employs 15,000 people in the UK alone, has taken two units totalling 1,500ft
2 at Connect Derby’s iHub innovation centre.
Airbus (
www.airbus.com) spends more than £5 billion every year with UK suppliers, and its UK supply chain comprises more than 4,000 companies.
The strategic location of the iHub (near the headquarters of Rolls-Royce Civil Aerospace) and the facilities available there will enable Airbus to expand the work of its Procurement Operations Propulsion team, which will be working with all the current Rolls-Royce engine programmes, including the XWB-84/97 for the A350-900/-1000, the T700 for the A330ceo, the T900 for the A380 and the T7000 for the A330neo.
A recent addition to the facilities at the iHub is the ‘iLab’, which provides a facility to carry out the design, prototyping and testing of new products and services.
It features an additive manufacturing cell, which includes a vacuum casting machine, a digital microscope, 3-D printers and 3-D AutoCAD software. There is also a virtual-reality suite.
Since its launch in autumn 2016, the iHub has attracted a diverse range of businesses from across the rail, aerospace and automotive supply industries.
Occupancy levels have exceeded expectations, with local, regional and national companies taking advantage of the building’s strategic location on Infinity Park. As well as being near Rolls-Royce, the iHub is within 15min of OEMs including Bombardier and Toyota.