NATS attains Gold Standard in Supply Chain Management

NATS, the leading air traffic control organisation, announced today that it has been awarded the prestigious Gold certification from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS), following a rigorous twelve month review process. NATS now joins an elite group of only eleven UK organisations that have reached this level.

Gold certification is the highest accolade available from CIPS and recognises an organisation’s strategic procurement capability and the value of the supply chain function in supporting and delivering business objectives. During the assessment process, CIPS scrutinised how NATS supply chain management contributes towards the company’s strategic intent, competitive advantage, effectiveness and efficiency, interviewing suppliers and internal stakeholders as well as supply chain experts.

David Noble, CEO of CIPS comments: “Going through CIPS certification is not an easy process, and reaching for gold is an excellent achievement. We’re pleased that NATS has continued their relationship with CIPS. Ensuring they have the strategic capability in their procurement and supply management to support the strategic intent of their organisation, means they are ready for the business challenges ahead. Not many companies have the ability and stamina to reach such a goal, so it’s equally exciting for us that NATS has become part of this high-achieving group.”

Chris Odam

“We went through the CIPS Gold process to confirm that we are a high performing business, to assess what we do alongside other top organisations and to ensure we have a leading standard to continue to improve against in the future,” said Chris Odam, Supply Chain and Business Services Director, NATS.

“Achieving the standard is a fantastic endorsement of our capability; it demonstrates our commitment to delivering better value for our customers and in an increasingly competitive market, it helps to differentiate NATS from other air traffic control organisations.”

Accreditation to the CIPS Gold standard is part of a continuous improvement process at NATS. The company has had CIPS Procurement Policies and Procedures certification since 2007 and in 2009, NATS was one of five organisations that piloted the new PAS 11000 standard for collaborative working in business, which has now been converted to a full British Standard.