Andy Start
Biography
Andy Start is the UK’s National Armaments Director (NAD), CEO of Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) and a member of the Defence Board, as a 4*/Permanent Secretary grade civil servant.
Andy has spent over 30 years leading Defence, Aerospace and Tech industries, and has held CEO, President and Managing Director positions in UK FTSE 100, US S&P500 and European listed businesses.
Active in the voluntary sector throughout his career, Andy has chaired MidKent College and Medway Innovation Centre, sat on the UK Electronics Council and board of Tech UK, and is an active mentor as well as an advisory board member of Women In Defence.
Andy has an MA from Kings College London, a B.Eng from Portsmouth and is a graduate of the Royal College of Defence Studies.
Andy has also held an Honorary Colonel position in the 106th (Yeomanry) Regiment Royal Artillery since May 2024.
National Armaments Director (NAD)
Leads the National Armaments Director (NAD) Group, bringing together the teams responsible for developing, delivering, sustaining, housing and harbouring the UK’s ‘national arsenal’ and defence estate.
Responsibilities include:
- delivering the capabilities required from industry to execute the defence plans and operations demanded by the new era
- shaping and delivering the Defence Industrial Strategy
- ensuring a resilient supply chain and the required readiness of the ‘national arsenal’
- leading on UK defence exports and acquisition reform
- harmonising procurement and working closely with wider government, industry, academia, and international partners to deploy best practice and investment
- managing safety, risk and environmental issues in accordance with mandated requirements and appropriate best practice
- representing UK interests in international military and political fora, including NATO and the EU
Chief Executive of Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S)
The Chief Executive Officer is the UK’s National Armaments Director and as the Accounting Officer for Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) is directly responsible to Parliament for the stewardship of DE&S’ resources.
To discharge these responsibilities, CEO has delegated authority from PUS to lead and manage DE&S:
- providing equipment and logistic support to current operations, including delivery against urgent operational requirements
- delivering funded equipment acquisition and support outputs, as agreed with Front Line Commands and the Head Office
- delivering projects to performance, time and cost targets, in accordance with agreed asset delivery plans
- managing safety, risk and environmental issues in accordance with mandated requirements and appropriate best practice
- representing UK interests in international military and political fora, including NATO and the EU