Smiths Case Study

In December 2004, Smiths Aerospace ran a fast-track competition aimed at contracting the services of a preferred supplier of calibration services at a scale suitable to support their entire UK operation; at least 12 sites in the first wave.

ASAP was able to demonstrate a flexible and well-proven approach that combined the strengths of its off-site service centres and its ability, in the longer term, to manage and operate Smith's existing calibration laboratory functions.

The programme was first piloted at the Cheltenham Electronic Services site where ASAP were able to deliver a range of short-term cost savings and exceed the standard of service obtained from the previous fragmented supplier base.

With the encouragement of senior Smith's management the service has since been rolled out to all the remaining Aerospace group of companies under a standardised Service Level Agreement framework, which is flexible enough to cover specialised localised requirements. This ensures a consistent level of service delivered to all UK sites and the possibility of widening the programme to include Smiths companies beyond the Aerospace group.