The partnership will bring together the respective and complementary strengths of both companies – where performance composites will meet protection, and joint capability will add to combined capacity. This announcement coincides with the DSEI exhibition taking place in London, 9-12 September 2025.
Joint composite capabilities – where performance composites meet protection / Photo: NP Aerospace
GTR Composites Group has its engineering roots embedded in the upper echelons of motorsport and performance automotive but also operates across a wide spectrum of other sectors, including marine, aerospace and defence. GTR brings the highest levels of composite technology, design, manufacture, precision and quality to this new partnership, reaching into a proven pedigree designing and building composite components for the world’s premier motorsport teams and other high-performance applications. As well, GTR has impressive and expansive composite production facilities including 12 autoclaves that will bring additional production capacity, volume and scale to the partnership.
NP Aerospace is a fully-established and trusted defence industry contractor and a leading supplier of armour products and vehicle integration and support services, globally. As well as their existing proven capabilities and significant composite production capacity, NP Aerospace bring their experience in winning and delivering large defence programmes to a cross sector of global government clients, such as the UK MoD. NP Aerospace also has in place the requisite trusted partner relationships with the major defence primes and their supply chains, that will allow the team, together, to reach the right audiences with this joint offering. As a specialist in composite armour products, such as body armour and EOD protection, NP will add their sector know-how, capacity and reach to GTR’s specialist technical prowess, creating a mutually beneficial and effective team that will benefit their collective client base, across defence.
Richard Dove, CEO at GTR said: we have the technology, the capability and the capacity to bring something new to defence, but we don’t yet have the deeper experience or specialist resource to truly deliver into the defence sector. Teaming with NP Aerospace is an obvious choice for us at it brings together the best parts of both companies with the sum being greater that the individual parts. With so many high tech and advanced technology requirements needing composite design and manufacture right now, such as drones and lightweight armour, we see this partnership as a win-win for everyone involved, particularly our joint customers.
James Kempston, CEO at NP Aerospace said: NP Aerospace has been designing and building composite armour products for many years and we’re a fully established and trusted supplier to defence customers, globally. With this new partnership we see an opportunity to bring the highest levels of composite technology, precision and know-how across from motorsport to defence to enhance what we do and also, to combine our individually impressive production capacities to ensure that, together, we’re best placed to deliver that joint capability. This partnership also aligns perfectly with the UK’s Strategic Defence Review themes of harnessing dual-use technologies and seeding innovation.