Inaugural industry day announced for 2019 leading defence expo

One of the region’s leading exhibitions for the defence and security industry is working with The Ministry of Defence to deliver a special event.

The Three Counties Defence and Security Expo, or 3CDSE – which will take place on Tuesday 16 July and Wednesday 17 July 2019 at The Three Counties Showground in Malvern, Worcestershire – will coincide with an MoD Industry Day.

This is the first time that the exhibition – which has been running for three years – has worked with The Ministry of Defence.  Previous shows welcomed more than 100 exhibitors and 1,000 delegates from a wide range of backgrounds and sectors including those working in Command, Control, Communications, and Computers Information Systems (C4IS), Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Cyber Security.

The Industry Day will share the vision and work of The Special Projects Programme Delivery Group which is responsible for the procurement and support of a wide range of equipment used primarily by specialist users.  It will also include presentations from each of the teams’ specialist portfolios and allow for smaller breakout sessions to facilitate more detailed discussions with MoD staff.

A special 3CDSE Networking & Innovation Dinner will take place on Tuesday 16 July at Eastnor Castle in Ledbury, providing an excellent opportunity for sponsors to raise their profile with more intimate groups of key decision makers from the military, law enforcement, security agencies and industry.

Brigadier Robin Anderton-Brown, head of the Special Projects Capability Branch within Joint Forces Command said: “The MoD Industry Day and innovation themed dinner provide an excellent opportunity to highlight JFC’s leading role in delivering advantage for the Joint Force and how innovative technologies, solutions and approaches are being embraced to deliver battle-winning capabilities.  The JFC jHub will outline many of the successful projects delivered during the last twelve months and inform Industry about how to be involved in the future.”  

3CDSE has established itself as an event that promotes business-to-business networking with key decision-makers and shares and amplifies innovative thinking and ideas within the industry.

Richard Morgan, partner and head of Defence, Security and the Forces Team at Top 100 UK law firm Harrison Clark Rickerbys, and lead for 3CDSE said: “We are very much looking forward to welcoming both visitors and exhibitors to the 2019 3CDSE event which is now recognised by MOD Special Projects as aligning with their requirements to promote agile procurement to SMEs.  What sets it apart from other defence and security expos is that it is at the heart of the industry it is seeking to serve, being based in the Three Counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, a hub of innovation from Special Forces in Hereford and GCHQ in Cheltenham to QinetiQ in Malvern.”

SME’s working within the sector have long been recognised as uniquely innovative and of vital importance to an industry worth an estimated £22billion, £7billion of which are exports.

Morgan continued : “3CDSE is designed with the SME at the core and focuses on issues from affordability through to exposure and governmental procurement agencies.  The bottom line remains that the event will maximise the opportunity for SMEs to join the MoD, government and law enforcement supply chains.”

Furthermore, the event comes at a critical time as the MoD has confirmed that – as part of diversifying its supply base by 2020 – it plans to spend two per cent of the UK’s defence budget on SMEs.  This is encouraging news as 90 per cent of the defence industry is based in The Three Counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire; the event is therefore perfectly placed for them to showcase their products and services and, ultimately, obtain government contracts.

Morgan concluded : “The net result is an event that is truly diverse in representing the spectrum of technologies, manufacturers, consultancies and software developers regardless of turnover or marketing budget. SMEs exhibit side by side with global Primes, allowing product and services to ‘do the talking’ to a unique audience of users and procurement agencies with transparent objectives for 2019 and beyond.”

The event will be split between the Industry Day on Tuesday 16 July and the exhibition and conference on Wednesday 17 July; following on from the success of previous years, there will be an expanded exhibition area – holding up to 150 exhibitors – offering excellent networking for SMEs.  There will also be extra external space where vehicles, hardware and demonstrations can be visited.  Wednesday will also see the introduction of MoD Connection Zones where companies and individuals will be given the chance to meet MoD officials, fostering conversation and networking.

Tickets for the Industry Day – security clearance is required – can be purchased via the website at 3cdse.co.uk.  Entry to the conference and exhibition is free and aimed at senior members of the military, law enforcement agencies, government agencies and defence and security industry.