PRESS RELEASE : £46 million contract awarded to support Armed Forces information access globally [June 2023]

• £46 million contract awarded to provide Geographic Information Systems (GIS) globally.
• Armed Forces Personnel to continue receiving the provision of live instant Geographic Information.
• Enterprise Agreement sustains 25 jobs with plans to increase roles over the next three years.

The Ministry of Defence has signed a new Enterprise Agreement with Esri UK worth £46 million, helping UK Armed Forces personnel access the right information, in any situation, across any network and on any device.

Over the next three years, this contract – for the continuation and supply of Geographic Information Systems – will support the MOD’s digital transformation journey to achieve and maintain the information advantage, as well as to shorten decision-making cycles. It will sustain 25 jobs across the UK with plans to increase roles across multiple sites by 50% over that time.

As the Ministry of Defence’s Strategic Geospatial Partner, Esri UK provides users across the MOD with access to its world-leading Geographic Information Systems (GIS), ArcGIS. Offering unique capabilities and deployed on most of the Department’s networks, military personnel use ArcGIS to gain greater insights by applying contextual tools to visualise and analyse their data and then collaborate via maps, apps, dashboards, and reports.

This partnership will maintain the provision of live instant Geographic Information to British troops in remote locations around the world by providing broader and easier access to location-based technologies and services, with some of its uses including Field Operations, mapping, data science, imagery, and data collection and management.

The technology will also enable specialist users to do high-end geospatial information (GEOINT) analysis from deployed front-line units to UK based Defence Intelligence analysts.

Major General Richard Spencer, Director Delivery of Intelligence and Expeditionary Services in Defence Digital, said:

I am pleased to be able to continue to work closely with our strategic partner, Esri UK. They have a key role in assisting us in our ambition to digitally transform all aspects of our business, from corporate workflows to front line operations, to help further improve and shorten our decision-making cycles.

Victoria Cope, Defence Digital Commercial Director, Enterprise, said:

Our partnership with Esri UK delivers critical operational outcomes and will save £21 million over the next three years.  This agreement forms part of our strategic approach to address digital spend and leverage our scale across the defence enterprise.

Peter Wilkinson, Managing Director at Esri UK, said:

We look forward to working with our extensive Partner network to help MOD achieve three key outcomes: building the MOD’s Location Infrastructure, with new location services and analytical capabilities; growing the reach of these capabilities across the entirety of MOD’s Enterprise; and developing a world-leading ecosystem of solutions that feed into and off of this Location Infrastructure, enabling a seamless two-way flow of information and intelligence across all their networks. This is how we will unlock the power of location to help MOD achieve and maintain Information Advantage.

The Defence Digital organisation employs around 2,400 personnel including military, civil servants, and contractors. The organisation is responsible for making sure that effective digital and information technology (D&IT) is put into the hands of the military and business front line.