Raytheon announces expansion in South-West England and Wales
Raytheon’s Broughton site (above) will become the Head Office for the Airborne Solutions business it is envisaged the new project would create 50 jobs in Wales over 18 months across programme and operational management, engineering and quality, logistics and commercial disciplines.
“Raytheon UK has leading expertise in aircraft modification for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance roles and delivers pivotal operational capability to the RAF, through the Sentinel and Shadow fleets,” said Richard Daniel, chief executive of Raytheon UK. “The increase in capacity through this new facility will enable Raytheon to address growing international defence and other markets.”
The investment, which has been supported by £407,000 business finance from the Welsh Government, has been welcomed by Economy Minister Edwina Hart, who said: “I am delighted to support this project which marks a new chapter in Raytheon’s activities in Wales. The expansion will not only enable the company to diversify but will see new technologies and products developed in Wales and exported worldwide. Raytheon works in one of our key sectors and will be creating a range of new employment opportunities on Deeside Enterprise Zone.”
The company also aims to invest in research and development to further strengthen its market position. Working with enterprises of all sizes, this research will focus on technology fields such as software engineering and avionics. With Raytheon’s apprenticeship programme in its third year, the investment will also generate further apprentice and graduate roles, helping to develop future next generation aerospace leaders.
With the creation of a Cyber Innovation Centre (CIC) based in the South-West of England, Raytheon's investment and growth in the UK, will provide development and test capability against current and emerging global cybersecurity threats. The centre is expected to open soon, housing over 100 cyber specialists who will work with a wide range of governmental and commercial customers to solve their complex cybersecurity challenges.
Operating as a research, development and innovation hub, the CIC will enable Raytheon to work with its partners on projects and demonstrations while extending the company's deep cyber expertise to other international locations. The facility joins Raytheon's global network of cyber centres and will focus on cyber and information assurance projects utilising the company's decades of experience, nation-scale capability and global partnerships.
"The new facility marks a significant investment of financial and intellectual capital for Raytheon in the UK, and continues the growth and capability expansion of our intelligence and security business," said Richard Daniel, chief executive, Raytheon UK. "Our end-to-end cyber capabilities include cyber defence solutions to address insider threats, counter intelligence, data analytics and secure information sharing. Raytheon's CIC will partner with field experts, academia and prime contractors to provide leading software development and vulnerability research services to help customers become resilient and operate with confidence in cyber space."
Raytheon will provide its expertise in detecting internal and external threats to information technology systems and deliver rapid threat response, advanced persistent threat defence, as well as business processes to address cyber threats. While providing a broader global cybersecurity capability, the centre is expected to have a benefit to the UK by helping to develop a workforce with high-demand skills and expertise in the growing cyber sector.
"The cyber threat extends globally and the opportunities for innovative solutions are global as well," said Lynn Dugle, president, Raytheon's Intelligence, Information and Services business. "The UK Cyber Centre expands Raytheon's network of global cyber capability and innovation centres while tapping into UK's strong talent pool as we defend some of the world's most sophisticated networks against very complex threats."
