West Midlands precision manufacturer HT Brigham has said it is targeting significant growth in the defence sector as rising programme activity and long-term investment plans create new opportunities across the UK supply chain.
The Birmingham-based company, which has a long-established reputation in aerospace presswork, enhanced with its AS9100 accreditation and pedigree for precision components, is seeing increased interest from defence primes and Tier 1 suppliers seeking partners capable of delivering repeatable quality, traceability and production resilience at scale.
HT Brigham’s focus on governance, accreditation and controlled manufacturing has positioned the business well as defence customers look to reinforce supply chains against geopolitical uncertainty and growing platform demand.
Chief executive Doug Allen said the move into defence builds naturally on the company’s aerospace foundations.
“Defence is a logical extension of what we already do well,” said Allen. “Our customers are looking for absolute confidence in process control, documentation and delivery performance, and those disciplines have been embedded in our business for many years through aerospace. As sovereign manufacturing capability becomes increasingly important, ”
“As defence programmes scale up, there is a clear requirement for UK-based manufacturers who can support long production runs while maintaining consistency and compliance. That plays directly to our strengths.”
The company has continued to invest in systems, tooling and quality infrastructure to support the more stringent requirements associated with defence work, including enhanced traceability, tighter process validation and long-term programme support.
While aerospace remains a core market, defence is now viewed as a key pillar of HT Brigham’s medium-term growth strategy, providing greater diversification and stability as customers seek dual-use capability across civil and military platforms.
Allen added:
“Diversification is about applying our precision presswork expertise into sectors where quality, reliability and long-term partnerships genuinely matter. Defence customers are looking for suppliers they can trust over decades, not just contract cycles.”
Operating in Birmingham for more than a century, HT Brigham supplies complex pressed and formed components to customers across the UK and internationally. The company’s growing presence in defence reflects wider industry trends, as manufacturers with strong aerospace credentials are increasingly called upon to support national capability and supply chain resilience. With defence budgets rising and platform programmes extending well into the next decade, HT Brigham believes its disciplined approach to growth will allow it to scale responsibly while maintaining the standards that underpin its reputation.
