Airbus in the UK wins Queen's Award for Enterprise
The company received the Queen’s Award for International Trade for outstanding overseas sales growth over the last three years and recognises Airbus’ commitment to adapt and develop in line with market needs in order to achieve planned growth.
The care given to understand and anticipate the future needs of customers and the particular attention to environmental issues by striving for improved fuel consumption was also noted by the Queen’s Awards panel.
Airbus facilities in Filton, Bristol and Broughton, North Wales (above) design and manufacture aircraft wings for the full range of the Airbus aircraft. The wings are then transported to final assembly lines in France and Germany, where, along with other major sections manufactured across Europe, they are assembled to form a completed aircraft which are then exported to customers around the world.
Tom Williams, Director, Airbus Operations Ltd, the UK subsidiary of Airbus SAS, said: “We are very proud and honoured to receive this award which recognises the significant UK expertise and skills which goes towards producing the leading range of aircraft in operation with airlines around the world.
“It was clearly recognised that we operate in a highly competitive market requiring commitment to very high research and development spending and to long term strategies that require several years to reach maturity.
“Aerospace is big business for the UK and Airbus spends more than £2bn annually with more than 1,000 UK suppliers, around 45% of which are small and medium size enterprises. We make a major contribution in supporting the UK’s status as a leading aerospace exporter.”
To date, more than 13,800 Airbus aircraft have been ordered by 352 customers globally – from the short-medium range A320 Family to the iconic A380 “superjumbo”.
Airbus is the world’s leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military airlifters, having evolved during the past 40 years on the vision, innovation and passion of its employees.
Around 10,000 are directly employed in the UK, with a further 100,000 employed through the extended supply chain within the UK. The company is also the second highest investor in aerospace research and development in the UK, investing around £480million annually to ensure the UK retains its lead in new developments in aviation and aerospace.
