Heathrow Airport will create a new procurement hub if the UK government gives the go-ahead to build a new £16bn third runway.

The procurement director at the airport, Ian Ballentin, said the new supply chain would involve the creation of a procurement hub and an academy. The former includes a manufacturing hub and consolidation centre, whereas the latter aims to develop skilled workforce able to cope with the programme.

Despite not being committed with any specific supplier, the Airport is already probing the possible suppliers and working on the plan to develop the new supply chain.

“We are planning to use small suppliers to boost innovation and to act as a broker of opportunity between different tiers of suppliers”, Ian Ballentin adds.

“The trick with all of this, it’s not sort of standing still and waiting for the starting pistol, it’s to get everything in place ready to go”, he said.

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Realated: Heathrow employs single procurement system for T2 Contracts