Tata Steel has secured a £45 million deal to supply aerospace steels to Safran, a French aircraft and engine manufacturer.
The move represents a “significant award” for Tata, which becomes the sole aircraft steel supplier to Safran until 2018 and is Europe’s second-largest producer of steel. The contract’s worth works out at around £9 million per year, rotherhamadvertiser.co.uk reveals.
One of the managing directors at Tata Steel, Mark Broxholme, didn’t seem surprised at the news; alluding to Tata’s long-standing relationship with Safran. In a statement cited by thestar.co.uk, he said: “We have a ling and successful record of supplying aerospace quality steels into the Safran Group.
“This… continues our long-term commercial and technical relationship with an important customer in this demanding market sector.”
Tata’s success may well inspire other similar suppliers to up their game; perhaps implementing further efficiencies and innovation, in addition to securing the AS9100 certification – which would establish their position as quality suppliers to the aerospace industry.
Tata Speciality Steels’ commercial director, Andrew Parker, confirmed that his company’s credentials had been pitted against those of other global companies to help Safran make its decision. Parker also revealed that Tata’s Chinese and UK-based aerospace service centres would prove integral to fulfilling its delivery requirements throughout the next five years.
