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The world’s largest pure-play contract logistics operator, GXO, and second-largest shipping line Maersk have, with consultancy Accenture and US engineering firm Amentum, joined forces to create a new “alliance” to serve the UK defence sector.
Announced today, the Torus Defence Supply Chain has been set up to “provide resilient, agile, and integrated defence supply chain solutions, helping the UK defence sector adapt to the evolving threat landscape and build the agile capacity required to enhance sovereign capability”.
The announcement added: “Designed to help address the UK government policy shift to readiness, visibility, and data exploitation, Torus draws on alliance members’ proven capabilities and mission-critical expertise in military domain, procurement and supply chain.”
For GXO, expanding in the defence sector has become a high priority since the completion of its acquisition of UK contract logistics firm Wincanton last year.
In a recent interview with The Loadstar, GXO CEO Patrick Kelleher said the aerospace/defence, life sciences, and industrial sectors were three key verticals it was targeting for growth, following the Wincanton takeover.
“The growth of those verticals, particularly aerospace/defence and life sciences, really came from M&A. The team members at Wincanton brought not only additional competencies, but an energy and a drive for organic growth and winning customers, and GXO is really benefiting,” he said.
Gavin Williams, MD of GXO UK & Ireland, today added: “The defence sector is tasked with responding to dynamic global challenges which has created substantial demands on its supply chains. GXO’s proven capability in the global defence sector optimises efficiency and builds resilience in complex supply chains, providing leading defence organisations with the assurance they will have the adaptive capacity required to deliver with confidence.”
GXO has aerospace/defence operations across over 30 global sites, and in the UK employs 60,000 staff at 450 sites.
Maersk will be the transport provider for cargo generated by Torus – or as the announcement put it, “will provide global integrated movement solutions utilising its extensive network across multiple modes to enable global reach ensuring compliance with stringent security standards for defence and government cargo”.
Maersk already undertakes similar work for the US armed forces through the military sealift programme.
Meanwhile, US-based government service contractor Amentum, created in 2020 after being spun off from engineering giant AECOM, has decades of experience working with the US Department of Defense and has recently been expanding in the UK.
In September, it said it would double its UK workforce with the addition of 3,000 new staff, shortly after CEO John Heller held a meeting with UK prime minister Kier Starmer and US president Donald Trump during the latter’s state visit to the UK.
The company is also one of the lead delivery providers for the nuclear developments at Hinkley Point and Sizewell C, as well as providing support services to the Royal Navy. In the Torus grouping, it will “provide overall integration and programme management”.
Loren Jones, Amentum SVP, said: “Our combined global reach and military domain experience perfectly aligns with the UK defence sector’s requirement for future operational resilience, and it’s imperative to move beyond systems optimised for just-in-time to ones of assured readiness and global reach.”
Accenture would manage the digital aspects of the project, explained Mark Smith, EMEA defence lead at Accenture.
“This alliance brings together unmatched expertise in logistics systems and data-driven digital transformation – enabling scalable, interoperable solutions that enhance mission readiness.
“Accenture’s deep defence logistics knowledge and cutting-edge digital capabilities, refined through working with over 20 NATO countries, can help ensure operational continuity and resilience in complex global environments,” he said.
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