Following the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, the update of the EU Industrial Strategy has highlighted the need to further accelerate the green and digital transitions and increase resilience of all the 14 industrial ecosystems, notably via the co-creation of transition pathways. For each industrial ecosystem it would consists in offering a better bottom-up understanding of the scale, cost, long term benefits and conditions of the required action to accompany the twin transition within the industrial ecosystem.
In this context, DG DEFIS is launching the preparation of a dedicated Transition Pathway for the Aerospace and Defence ecosystem (ASD)* to support its transformation taking into account both the challenges and opportunities of the dual transition, but also the increasing geopolitical tensions and the strategic nature of the ecosystem.
The Transition Pathway will contribute to the development of a business case for the transition to resilient, innovative, sustainable, and digital ecosystem in a co-creation process with Members States, industry and all stakeholders, including social partners and non-governmental organisations. The co-creation of Transition Pathways is an opportunity for the entire industrial ecosystem to jointly identify the challenges and to find common responses to them. As outcome of this co-creation process, the Transition Pathway should be agreed with Member States, industry and all stakeholders and contain the possible actions to accompany the transition.
To this end, DG DEFIS aims at collecting relevant inputs from across the ASD ecosystem via this dedicated online form.
Interested entities can contribute to this preparatory consultation until 15 October 2023.
The Commission services will ensure the co-creation process for the ASD ecosystem through regular interactions with the Member States and stakeholders at large. Key for the recovery and transformation is collaboration and forward looking, responsible and transparent approach. All together, representatives of the ecosystem will think, plan ahead and be as ambitious as needed in the achievement of resilience, sustainability and digitalisation of the ASD industries ecosystem while ensuring that all can benefit from the transitions.
*The Aerospace and Defence (ASD) ecosystem, as defined in the EU Industrial Strategy, covers manufacturing companies in aeronautics, space and defence, space operators, data and service providers, and research institutes. This ecosystem supplies the EU with crucial capacities for strengthening overall resilience, technological sovereignty and open strategic autonomy, also with regards to critical infrastructure and security and protection of its citizens and territory.
