We are pleased to announce that Whippendell have been awarded a share of £750k of Amazon Web Services (AWS) technical support to assist us in digitising our business and enhancing our production capabilities. The scheme, a partnership between the MoD, AWS and MAKE UK Defence aims to provide strategic guidance and support across areas such as artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, digital engineering and general digitisation of the operation. The objective is increase the efficiency and capability of the UK SME Defence supply chain.

Minister of State for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard said at the event held at DPRTE 2026 that the initiative would “modernise and transform the manufacturing and industrial capabilities within the UK’s defence SME community,” adding that the funding would help companies “digitalise their services and accelerate the development of defence solutions.”

The programme aligns with the UK government’s 2025 Strategic Defence Review and Defence Industrial Strategy 2025, which commit to increasing defence spending with SMEs by £2.5bn and positioning the sector as a driver of economic growth.

Whippendell Marine specialises in electrical solutions for harsh environments and is a world leader in the provision of aircraft ground power support systems for naval aircraft. We have equipment in service with several international navies and onboard all UK Royal Navy Warships and Submarines.