Qioptiq Opens £3.7m STAS (Surveillance and Target Acquisition Support) Facility in North Wales in Support of the UK Armed Forces

 

Qioptiq, an Excelitas Technologies® company and global technology leader in delivering innovative optical and photonic solutions, announced the official opening of its £3.7m facility in North Wales. The facility will support the £83m UK MOD STAS (Surveillance and Target Acquisition Support) contract, which was awarded to Qioptiq in March 2017. The STAS award allows Qioptiq’s St Asaph site to provide support for surveillance and targeting equipment to the UK Armed Forces over the next six years. Work under the new STAS contract will merge 20 individual support contracts into one, saving the MOD £47 million over the next six years.

 

Major General Colin McLean CBE, Director Land Equipment, officially opened the facility by unveiling a commemorative plaque, followed by a tour of the building and an opportunity to view the many pieces of vital equipment that will be supported from North Wales by Qioptiq. The facility has many unique and innovative features designed to ensure that the armed forces have necessary equipment. 

 

The contract covers equipment used right across the UK Armed Forces delivering capability to all three front line commands. Chief Executive Officer of the MOD’s Defence Equipment and Support organization, Tony Douglas said, “Crucially, the STAS contract, will deliver improved support to Her Majesty’s Armed Forces.”

 

Peter White, Managing Director at Qioptiq said, “For this opportunity we acknowledged we needed to take a more collaborative approach, which has helped secure a major contract from UK MOD to support equipment vital to the safety of our soldiers in front line operations.”

 

Welsh Government played an important role in supporting the growth and expansion of Qioptiq in St. Asaph, North Wales by investing in the new purpose-designed facility, which opened next to the current Qioptiq plant in the St Asaph Business Park. Economy Secretary Ken Skates commented, “Qioptiq is one of our most innovative, high-value manufacturing companies working in a priority sector. The partnership has helped secure the long-term future of the plant in St Asaph, where it has a significant economic impact on the local economy through local employment and supply chains.”

 

Excelitas and its Qioptiq subsidiaries are world-recognized as first-tier suppliers to many of the defense and aerospace sector’s leading companies with a product range that includes some of the most sophisticated advanced optical technologies ranging from night vision sights to head-up display optical modules to space components. Excelitas Technologies is a United States corporation with locations throughout Europe, Asia and North America. It employs over 550 people in North Wales on two sites at St Asaph and Bodelwyddan.