Providing the EDGE from concept to delivery

EDGE UK® provides academia, industry, and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with a truly innovative environment. The EDGE UK® enables innovative concepts to be explored with real military and commercial equipment, using our state-of-the-art collaboration facilities.

As well as offering a full suite of cutting-edge technology, the facility also grants partners access to over 50 defence industry partners and their experience in relevant domains.

When a partner participates in an EDGE UK® project, they will be introduced to processes confirming the validity of a concept. Technical limitations will be identified with a supporting business case ensuring customer needs are met.

Why become an EDGE UK® partner?

Real evaluation and demonstration facilities
Enables users to visualise and explore ideas
An attractive route to market for technology suppliers
Fast-paced and agile development which brings academia, technology leaders and SMEs together
Exploits innovative ideas from new businesses
Significantly de-risks new programmes and concepts
A novel commercial model which benefits all participants

Our project development model

Clear routes to market

With finite resources, the focus of EDGE UK is on short projects bringing technologies together to demonstrate real operational benefit.

One of the key challenges which face our partners is transforming their technology from concept to market. With EDGE UK®, our partners are encouraged to identify potential uses for their technologies. Our equipment plan takes all of the technology demonstrators available through our partners and identifies the potential synergies between other partner products.

This approach can lead to Urgent Operational Requirements demonstration, with the potential to translate into pull-through to satisfy a customer requirement.

Identifying innovative solutions

As EDGE UK® is product agnostic, the facility is not a showcase of products or services, rather a facilitator of best-of-breed products and services. EDGE UK® leverages existing technologies and integrates them into systems to show the "art of the possible", which can then be delivered in the near-term through a funded programme.

Return on Investment

Our project development model ensures that any project which is undertaken has an agreed exploitation plan. EDGE UK® will not fund projects, buy equipment or purchase licences; this helps ensure that any risks have been identified and there is a genuine customer need. If a suitable project has been identified, ROI is investigated to ensure a future is possible for the project.

EDGE UK® discourages partners with immature concepts, such as those at Technology Readiness (TRL) levels 1 to 3 where the basic science or proof of concept has just been observed or TRL levels 4 to 5 where basic component level validation has just occurred. Even at TRL levels 6 to 8, not all projects will be completed successful and it is recognised that success can also be achieved by identifying shortfalls early so alternative solutions can be deployed and understanding that further expenditure will not result in success.

Ensure partner’s IPR are protected and ITAR compliance

Only two documents must be signed to join as a Project Supporter; EDGE UK® Membership Agreement and a Non-Disclosure Agreement. These documents safeguard project members Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and ensure compliance with International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

Project plans do not attempt to deconstruct or reverse-engineer any technologies, instead they build upon existing technologies and expand upon them.

Utilises MoD's and other partner's existing infrastructures

EDGE UK® uses real, battlespace capable equipment and has access to General Dynamics UK's C4I subject matter experts, enabling partners access to world-class technologies and engineers. EDGE UK® utilises ISTAR infrastructures customers have invested in.

Using existing infrastructures will help in the long-term viability of a project. Solutions which require retrofitting of existing platforms is more costly, whereas changes which require software updates or plug-in hardware will encourage a customer to accept new technology more readily.

Enables fast project delivery

As EDGE UK® projects are unfettered from the typical restraints of military technology projects, EDGE UK® enables development of concepts within weeks.

Even with cyclic, delayed-start, phased or larger projects, EDGE UK® is designed to enable project development over an expediated timescale