Corporate report

Small and Medium Enterprises - Action Plan 2021

Published 26 May 2021

1. Foreword

Much has changed at Sellafield Ltd, nationally and internationally since we last published our SME Strategy and Action Plan in the spring of 2019.

One thing which remains constant is our commitment to increasing opportunities for SMEs within our supply chain. We recognise the adaptability, innovation and value which SMEs bring in helping us to deliver our mission.

In response to feedback from the SME community individually and at our SME Forum we have developed new actions.

These will contribute to Sellafield Ltd achieving the challenging target 31 - 33% of our overall supply chain spend being allocated to SMEs by 31 March 2022. To do so we’ll need everyone in the supply chain, clients etc. to work together effectively and take action.

No matter where suppliers sit in the supply chain, we encourage a review of this document against their own activities and consideration of what else can be done.

We welcome feedback, suggestions and solutions on which activities would make a difference.

One of the areas to come in to focus post Brexit and COVID-19 is the emphasis placed on social value in procurement, including the use of SMEs. We are proud to have launched LINC with Sellafield Ltd back in 2017 which favours SMEs for lower value procurements.

However, we recognise there is still much work to be done and we are developing our response to social value on a category by category basis.

The action plan should be viewed as a working document which we will update on an annual basis. This will assist with us all becoming more accountable.

Susan Lussem Supply Chain Director, Sellafield Ltd

John Berry Senior Supply Chain Manager, Sellafield Ltd

2. Sellafield Ltd actions - New

Number	Activity	Expected outcome	Owner	Target date	Status
1	Develop strategic plans for delivering on social value, including SMEs, through each category	SME target embedded into individual category approaches	Category Managers	01 September 2021	Amber
2	Production of supply chain map displaying all Tier 2 partners with the frameworks they are involved in	Clarity around frameworks will help SMEs navigate the complex supply chain	Supply chain development team	01 July 2021	Red
3	Deliver training sessions for directorate colleagues on how to actively engage with SMEs	Improved capability and likelihood of SMEs being used	Supply chain development team	01 June 2022	Red
4	Establish action focused SME steering group within the directorate	Review the implementation of SME strategies and activities across the directorate and supply chain which deliver best value	Supply chain development team	01 May 2021	Amber
5	Carry out an annual survey measuring the perception of SMEs in doing business in our supply chain	Receive feedback which allows us to measure progress	Supply chain development team	01 December 2021	Amber
6	Deliver training to SMEs which educates on how to meet Sellafield Ltd quality requirements	Assists SMEs in understanding requirements and meeting quality standards	Supply chain development team/quality teams	01 September 2021	Red
7	Create a route for SMEs with unique innovative offers to be able to present them to a relevant audience	increases visibility to Sellafield of innovative solutions	Supply chain development team	01 December 2021	Amber

3. Sellafield Ltd actions - Existing

Number	Activity	Expected outcome	Owner	Target date	Status
8	Build SME Key Performance Indicators into all new major contracts and frameworks	Ensures that the SME target applied is relevant to the contract	Sourcing team	31 March 2022	Red
9	Explore how contractual flow downs such as insurance and quality requirements are applied intelligently and relevant to the service/product being delivered	Reduces burden and administration on SMEs	Sourcing team/category managers	01 September 2021	Amber
10	Review and simplify the standard/mandatory questions included in tenders	Reduces burden and administration placed on SMEs	Sourcing team	01 September 2021	Amber
11	Include a specific agenda item for quarterly contract reviews with tier 2 suppliers to monitor SME spend	Maintains the focus on delivering actions under the SME agenda	Category managers	01 September 2021	Amber
12	Increase annual number of challenges issued via LINC with Sellafield Ltd by 30%	More opportunities for SMEs to bid for work directly	Supply chain development team	31 March 2022	Amber
13	Hold quarterly meetings with tier 2 community	Maintains the focus on delivering actions under the SME agenda	Supply chain development team	Ongoing	Green
14	Continuous review of SME Forum activities	Improved relevance and value of the forum for attendees including Meet the Buyer sessions	Supply chain development team/SMEs	31 March 2022	Amber

4. Tier 2 actions

Organisation	Action	Status
ADAPT	i) Continue our current level of SME spend at more than 30% on average. ii) Develop the business expertise of our supply chain SMEs to better equip them for work at Sellafield. iii) Develop partnering arrangements with SMEs that support the DDP Lot1 programme of work for 2021/22. iv) Actively encourage and promote innovative solutions from SME organisations.	Red
Atos	i) Identify members of the 2021 Atos SME Horizons Programme intakes that could add value to Sellafield Ltd and facilitate engagement for proposal evaluation.	Amber
Cavendish Nuclear	i) Form commercial arrangements with 3 new SMEs by March 2022. i) Form commercial arrangements with 3 new SMEs by March 2022. ii) Formally introduce 3 news SMEs to other non Sellafield Ltd, non Cavendish business units. iii) Provide all identified, appropriate Sellafield SME’s with visibility of Cavendish Nuclear Sellafield Procurement Strategy.	Red
Design Services Alliance (AXIOM and Progressive	i) Monitor and then maintain the SME workshare within AXIOM, while the overall sub contractor workshare may be reduced. ii) Share AXIOM improvements outputs or lessons learnt with 3 SMEs during year. iii) Include SME consideration in the refreshment of improvements/optimisation programmes being carried out during year and share these at the DSA Supplier Forum events.	Red
i3	i) An increase of % spend with SMEs target 10% more than the previous year. ii) To improve visibility of opportunities through advertisement. iii) Appoint a SME project sponsor. iv. Coach and mentor 3 SME’s.	Amber
OneAim	i. An increase of % spend with SMEs target 10% more than the previous year. ii. To improve visibility of opportunities through advertisement. iii. Provide a minimum of 2 bursaries via our leadership bursary scheme to SMEs based in Copeland and Allerdale (covering the cost of a place on Leader to Leader). iv) Appoint a SME project sponsor. v) Develop a joint relationship management plan with at least one SME.	Amber
PPP	i) Roll out of Multi Project Procurements mandating SME involvement. ii) Establishment and delivery of a proactive matchmaking service to ‘match’ high performing supply chain companies particularly SMEs with a strong social value commitment and track record to like minded key delivery partner organisations.	Amber
px Ltd	i) SME suppliers to be encouraged to use collaboration with small businesses to ensure more scope can be delivered through the SME route. ii) SME awareness to be made available to all px site staff who are included in the site procurement process. Drive a drive out a more collective appreciation at all levels and focus on the targets. iii) Procurement department to ensure final checks are developed to ensure local SME opportunities have been considered in all ITT processes.	Amber
The Decommissioning Alliance	i) Maintain SME spend at circa 20%. ii) Provide supply chain with visibility of opportunity pipeline via supply chain forums, Linkedin etc. iii) Identify and mentor 2 SME’s during the course of the year.	Red

5. Collaborative actions

Organisation	Action	Status
Collective Tier 2s and Sellafield Ltd	Active involvement with the Swimming with the Big Fish initiative which exists to develop fair and sustainable contracts and frameworks within the Sellafield Ltd supply chain for local suppliers, to encourage investment for sustainable social impact	Red
Collective Tier 2s and Sellafield Ltd	Explore the creation of a procurement pipeline across all major Tier 2 suppliers Collective Tier 2s	Red
Collective Tier 2s	Ensure that where opportunities exist further down the supply chain that SMEs have understanding and visibility of how to access	Red
Collective Tier 2s	Provide SMEs access to relevant training courses which improves their knowledge and capability in areas such as nuclear safety	Red

6. SME commitments

Actions
- Seek and deploy collaborative approaches with other SMEs and larger businesses.
- Understand their own capabilities and build robust, impactful case studies as evidence.
- Fully research and understand the client needs and challenges outlined in strategies and plans.
- Seek constructive feedback from clients on successful and unsuccessful bids.
- Provide early, constructive feedback on engagements within the supply chain
- Become familiar with procurement routes available within all supply chain tiers.
- Build relationships/networks to complement intelligence gathering. Support/attend relevant industry events.
- Become ‘match fit’ by researching, understanding and meeting what the client is looking for from a supplier e.g. quality, safety, expertise, compliance, behaviours.