Uplift360 wins Luxembourg defence framework for advanced materials

UK company and ADS member Uplift360 has secured a multi-year framework agreement with Luxembourg’s Directorate of Defence to strengthen Europe’s sovereign supply of advanced materials.

The advanced materials company will work with the Luxembourg Directorate of Defence as a strategic materials partner, supporting efforts to reduce exposure to geopolitical shocks and supply chain disruption.

Under the agreement, Uplift360 will produce high-performance materials sourced exclusively from Europe and support their integration into aerospace and defence platforms.

The award follows NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s launch of a multinational project on defence-critical raw materials at the NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum. Uplift360 said the agreement reflects the growing importance of industrial resilience as European countries increase defence investment and seek more secure supply chains.

European defence supply chain resilience

Uplift360 will support Luxembourg’s defence industrial strategy by building intelligence on advanced material and platform requirements, increasing production capability, and developing new technologies and systems for secure material supply.

The company said the framework agreement would help strengthen Europe’s sovereign industrial base by enabling high-performance materials to be produced from existing European sources and integrated more quickly into defence and aerospace programmes.

The approach is intended to reduce reliance on vulnerable international supply routes and improve the reliability of material availability for industry.

Sam Staincliffe, co-founder and chief executive of Uplift360, said: “Demand for advanced materials will only continue to increase across NATO Europe. The Alliance requires continent-wide supply chain resilience which our framework agreement with Luxembourg DOD advances.

“Over the next decade, we will scale advanced materials production, ensuring industry keeps pace with operational demand.”

Advanced materials for NATO defence readiness

Luxembourg said the agreement supports the country’s Defence Industrial Strategy and the multinational Defence Critical Raw Materials high-visibility project signed at the NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum.

Yuriko Backes, Luxembourg Minister of Defence, said: “Robust supply chains are the bedrock of our necessary defence industrial ramp-up. Our defence readiness depends on it.

“With this multi-year framework agreement, Luxembourg is fostering innovation, maximising resource efficiency all while contributing to our resilience and environmental protection.”

Ari Kristinn Jónsson, president of the NATO Innovation Fund, said the agreement showed how breakthrough technologies could be connected with government demand to strengthen NATO’s industrial base.

He said Uplift360 was addressing “a real vulnerability in Europe’s advanced materials supply chain”.

Uplift360 said the model developed with Luxembourg could be replicated more widely across NATO as the company scales its capabilities in Europe.