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Sep 21 2021

NSPA holds first Next Generation Rotorcraft Capability (NGRC) Industry Day

LUXEMBOURG - On 20 and 21 September 2021, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) held the first Next Generation Rotorcraft Capability (NGRC) Industry Day.

The event brought together over 40 companies across the Air and Space sector, as well as national and NATO representatives, to discuss the project and support the preparation of the Concept Stage of this High Visibility Project.

A significant amount of the current helicopter fleets in service with Allies will reach the end of their life cycle in the 2035-40 period and beyond, with the subsequent need for replacements. The Next Generation Rotorcraft Capability offers a multinational framework under which its participants can combine efforts towards the design, the development and eventually the acquisition of the next generation of medium multi-role rotorcraft capabilities.

France, Germany, Greece and Italy, with the United Kingdom in the lead, are the participating nations. Spain, the Netherlands and the United States are observer nations. NSPA will act as the Executing Agent for the Concept Stage, as tasked by NGRC Participating Nations. The NGRC Concept Stage is planned to start mid to late 2022.

The Industry Day, held at NSPA in Capellen, Luxembourg, gathered over 100 attendees from industry, nations and NATO. Ms Stacy Cummings, NSPA General Manager, opened the event on the first day. "I am acutely aware of the importance of best practices and industry engagement as we develop and acquire capabilities for the Alliance's armed forces. Because of this, at NSPA we believe that early engagement with Industry is a critical success factor for this and similar large-scale acquisition projects", she said.

I am acutely aware of the importance of best practices and industry engagement as we develop and acquire capabilities for the Alliance's armed forces. Because of this, at NSPA we believe that early engagement with Industry is a critical success factor for this and similar large-scale acquisition projects.

NATO's Defence Investment staff provided an introduction to the origin of the project and the reasons behind the requirement for a multinational solution to replace the ageing fleets. This was followed by a presentation from participating nations clarifying the technical and operational attributes for the new rotorcraft capability. NSPA's Acquisition Planning and Development Office (APDO) and Procurement staff then took the floor to explain the acquisition approach to NGRC, focusing on the Concept Stage.

The Industry Day included four workshops focused on relevant technical, operational and programmatic topics that were introduced by industry participants. All participating companies then had the opportunity to highlight their potential contribution to the project during one-to-one discussions with teams from NATO, nations and NSPA.

"This is the first major event we have held in-house since the beginning of the pandemic and this brought challenges that we were able to overcome. We are very happy with the outcome of the event, and very grateful for all the participation and interest it has generated, bringing together nations, industry and NATO, all key stakeholders for the success of this ambitious project", said Cyril Heckel, Principal Acquisition and Life Cycle Management Officer, APDO.

The APDO – who organised the event - act as NSPA's acquisition focal point and are the Agency's lead for initiation of NGRC. The office helps NATO and nations to identify and develop multinational cooperative projects to deliver key defence capabilities and tackle modern security challenges.