Framework for Nato industry engagement

At the Chicago Summit, Heads of State and Government stressed that “Maintaining a strong defence industry in Europe and making fullest possible use of the potential of defence industrial cooperation across the Alliance remain an essential condition for delivering the capabilities needed for 2020 and beyond”. Consequently, NATO, nations and industry have been considering how to improve the NATO-Industry relationship.

It is well understood that nations have a broad range of relationships with their defence industry. This Framework is not intended to be an effort on the part of NATO to develop a NATO defence industrial policy, nor is it intended to affect national or other defence industry policies. Instead, this approach supports the implementation of the NATO Strategic Concept, facilitating effective and timely industry involvement in the NDPP through existing arrangements and NATO bodies. Ultimately, this approach will contribute to the enhancement of NATO capability development.

NATO is a facilitator of capability development and delivery, an enabler of interoperability, and a forum for multinational cooperation, for all required Alliance capabilities. NATO must continue to find ways to harmonise its own capability requirements with national requirements through a comprehensive application of the NATO Defence Planning Process (NDPP).

STO (Science & Technology Organization) is a NATO subsidiary body, established with a view to meeting to the best advantage the collective needs of NATO, NATO Nations and partner Nations in the fields of Science and Technology. STO delivers its products through two mechanisms: a “Network” (consisting of the former Research and Technology Organisation – RTO, based on voluntary contributions from Nations) and a “Lab” (the Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation, operating on a customer funded regime).

STO activities can span from the early investigation of future technologies (including basic research) and concepts up to the development of technologies with higher readiness levels, of integration of systems and the support to standards definitions, thus including both non procurement and pre-procurement stages. STO activities can include studies in support of procurement methodologies such as Life-Cycle Cost, Through-life support, etc. Participation of Industry representatives occurs at every level of the organization, consisting of approximately 15% of the total effort in the Technical Teams level of the “Network”. Regarding the “Lab”, Industry can be both a customer of the CMRE and a service provider to CMRE.