Security Starts in the Supply Chain: Alpha Data at Lockheed Martin UK SMEUNITE
Last week, Alpha Data joined fellow SMEs at the 5th annual Lockheed Martin UK SMEUNITE conference in Worcestershire, UK, taking a place in the Supplier Showcase. The exclusive event brings Lockheed Martin’s senior leadership and procurement teams together with the defense innovators whose technology supports its programs in the UK and overseas.
What is Lockheed Martin UK SMEUNITE®?
SMEUNITE® is Lockheed Martin’s supplier ecosystem for small and medium-sized enterprises, a collaborative technical community built to close the gap between SME innovation and defense procurement. It gives companies like Alpha Data a launch pad for bringing new technology to the defense industry, both in the UK and through Lockheed Martin’s global reach. This year’s conference brought SMEs, government, and industry bodies together, reflecting a simple principle: innovation starts with collaboration.
Why Supply Chain Resilience Matters Now
The UK Ministry of Defence has committed to increasing its SME spend by £2.5 billion by summer 2028, on top of its current £5 billion baseline, and the Defence Investment Plan sets out where that investment will go. One of the plan’s four strategic objectives is to improve supply chain diversity and resilience by requiring better practices from Defence and its major suppliers. That places primes and the SMEs behind them at the center of delivery, which is why supply chain resilience was the key theme of this year’s conference.
Security: A Tightly Controlled Supply Chain
Threat actors are always looking for potential entry points, and suppliers are no exception. The MoD recognizes this through its Defence Cyber Certification (DCC) scheme, which sets a common cyber security benchmark for suppliers across the UK defense supply chain, while the US Department of Defense applies its own Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) to its supply base. Alpha Data already holds Cyber Essentials Plus and is currently working toward attaining both DCC and CMMC, as part of a continually improving security posture across UK and US operations.
Alongside ISO 9001:2015 for quality management, our FPGA and Adaptive SoC platforms are designed and manufactured locally within a tightly controlled supply chain, backed by strong industry partnerships including our Platinum membership with AMD. As active members of ADS and Make UK Defence, we also work alongside the wider UK defense and manufacturing community.
Resilience: Delivering In Spec, On Time
Resilience also means certainty of supply. AI demand, regional conflicts, and tariffs keep moving prices and pushing availability to its limits. Programs need a supplier who can commit to delivering in spec, on time, every time. Our multi-sourced local supply chain, 30+ years of heritage, and mature design processes keep programs supplied. We support programs globally, with capability that spans both sides of the Atlantic: our US facility adds manufacturing and ITAR-certified design capability.
Continue the Conversation
Thank you to Lockheed Martin UK for hosting, and to everyone who helped make the day such a success. If you would like to discuss how Alpha Data can support your program, our team would be delighted to start or continue the conversation.
