Statutory guidance

Activity type factsheet 2024/25: Develop and make

Published 18 March 2024

Develop and Make

Under the Defence Reform Act 2014, the SSRO must provide the Secretary of State with its assessment of the appropriate rates used to determine the contract profit rate for pricing qualifying defence contracts and qualifying sub-contracts. Part of the methodology is the categorisation of comparator companies into five activity types.

  • Develop and Make
  • Provide and Maintain
  • Ancillary Services
  • Construction
  • Information Technology Services

The results of these groups are separately analysed and this fact sheet describes the Develop and Make group results.

The baseline profit rate combines results from “Develop and Make” and “Provide and Maintain”, as set out in the Recommendation Factsheet. For further information on the methodology used to calculate these rates please see the Single Source baseline profit rate, capital servicing rates and funding adjustment methodology.

Develop and make

Companies undertaking comparable activities considered as ‘Develop and Make’ are expected to engage in manufacturing and the design and development contributing to that process. This would therefore not include manufacturing on behalf of a hiring firm that supplies the design, or those solely undertaking research or design work with no associated manufacturing. Where development activities do not seek to result in a novel or differentiated product the company is less likely to be considered comparable.

Profit on cost of production

2020/21 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Underlying rate (unadjusted for capital servicing) 9.67% 9.28% 9.45% 9.80% 9.76%
Capital servicing adjustment -0.98% -1.15% -0.77% -0.64% -1.41%
Underlying rate 8.69% 8.13% 8.68% 9.16% 8.35%
Rolling average* 8.07% 8.23% 8.34% 8.66% 8.55%

Note: The capital servicing adjustment accounts, at an aggregate level, for different levels of capital employed across the companies in the index and so sets a baseline upon which step 6 of the contract profit rate applies.

‘*’ A four-year average was used for 2022/23; a three-year average for pre-2022/23 and a three-year average (excluding 2022/23 underlying rate) for 2023/24 and 2024/25.

The pre-2020/21 underlying rates used for the three-year average were: 2018/19: 7.67% and 2019/20: 7.86%

Data sources

For further information on the data selection approach please see section 7 of the Single Source baseline profit rate, capital servicing rates and funding adjustment methodology. A company update search of the Orbis database[1] was carried out on 1 November 2023 on data update number 342001 using software version 342. The financial data for the calculation was extracted from Orbis at the same time.

Median capital servicing adjusted return on cost of production

Proportion of Companies by country

Proportion of companies with defence keyword

Supplementary statistics

Number of companies 247
of which profit making 203
Aggregate turnover (£billions) £1,096
Total capital employed (CE) (£billions) £266
Average company CP:CE ratio 3.68

Source: Orbis (Cash figures shown in rounded GBP Billions)

Names of companies in the index

Aaon INC
AB Volvo
Accuracy International Limited
Advanced Mechanical and Optical Systems *
Aerovironment, Inc. *
Aguirre Maquinaria Agricola SL.
AIR Industries Group *
Airbus SE
Alamo Group INC
Alimak Group AB
Allient INC
Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc.
Alstom S.A *
American Axle & Manufacturing Hldngs INC
Ametek INC
Amtech Systems INC
Analog Devices INC
Andritz AG
Aptiv PLC
Astec Industries INC
Astronics Corporation *
Astronova, Inc.
Athader SL
Atlas Copco AB
ATS Corporation
Aumann AG *
Autoliv, Inc.
Avant Tecno Oy
Avon Protection PLC * (J)
Axcelis Technologies INC
Axon Enterprise, Inc.
Azkoyen SA
BAE Systems PLC
Bailey Trailers Limited
Barco NV
Barnes Group INC
Binder + Co AG
Bittium OYJ *
BK Technologies Corporation *
Blue Bird Corporation *
BMI Trailers Limited
Boeing Company (The) *
Broadwind, Inc. *
Bruker Corporation
Brunvoll Holding AS
BWX Technologies Inc.
Caci International INC
Cactus, Inc.
Carver Group Limited
Castledon LTD
Caterpillar INC
Ceco Environmental Corp.
CGG
Chart Industries INC
Chemring Group PLC
Circor International INC (J)
CMZ Machine Tool Manufacturer Sociedad Limitada.
CNH Industrial N.V
Cognex Corp
Coherent Corp
Cohort PLC
Colosio S.R.L.
Columbus Mckinnon Corp
Commercial Vehicle Group, Inc.
Comtech Telecommunications Corp *
Construcciones Y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, S.A.
Continental AG
CPI Aerostructures INC
CTA International SAS
CTT Systems AB
Cummins Inc.
Curtiss Wright Corp
D.R.A. LTD
Data I/O Corp *
David Ritchie (Implements) Limited
de Lorenzo S.P.A.
Deere & CO
Deutz AG
Douglas Dynamics, Inc.
Dril-Quip INC *
Ducommun INC
Duerr AG
Electromecanica Naval E Industrial SA *
Energy Recovery, Inc.
Enerpac Tool Group Corp
Espey MFG and Electronics Corp
EVS Broadcast Equipment SA
Fabricacion de Elevadores SL *
Fabrications Mecaniques de l’Atlantique *
Faro Technologies INC *
Federal Signal Corp
Filtronic PLC
Forvia SE
Frigoveneta S.P.A.
Frumecar SL
G.H.B. (Holding) Limited
Genasys Inc. *
Gencor Industries, Inc.
General Dynamics Corp
General Electric Company
Gentex Corp
Gesellschaft fuer Oeltechnik mit beschraenkter Haftung
Gorman-Rupp Company (The)
Graco INC
Graham Corp
Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (The)
Guzzetti S.P.A. *
Heico Corp
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
Heroux-Devtek INC
Hexcel Corp
Hiden Instruments Limited
Honeywell International INC
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.
Idex Corp
IMI PLC
Industrias Montanesas Electricas Mecanicas SL
Inficon Holding AG
Ingersoll Rand Inc.
Innovative Solutions & Support INC
Interroll Holding AG
IPG Photonics Corporation
Istobal SA
Italcab S.P.A. *
John Bean Technologies Corp
Jost Werke AG
Judges Scientific PLC
Kadant INC
Kaman Corp *
Katsa Oy
Kesla OYJ *
Keysight Technologies, Inc.
Klingelnberg AG
Koenig UND Bauer AG
Komax Holding AG
Konecranes OYJ
Kratos Defense and Security Solutins INC *
L3harris Technologies, Inc.
LAM Research Corp
Leonardo S.P.A.
Lillbacka Powerco Oy *
Linamar Corporation
Lockheed Martin Corp
Lombardi Converting Machinery S.P.A. *
Magna International INC
Manitex International, Inc.
Manitou BF
Manitowoc Company, Inc. (The) *
Marel HF
Mariani S.R.L.
Maschinenfabrik Berthold Hermle AG
MAX Automation SE
Mecapack
Mercury Systems INC
Mikron Holding AG
Miller Industries INC
MKS Instruments INC
Modine Manufacturing CO
Moog INC
Motorola Solutions, Inc.
Mpac Group PLC *
MS International PLC
Nammo AS
NC Engineering (Hamiltonsbawn) Limited *
NFI Group Inc. *
NG Bailey Group Limited *
Nordson Corp
Northrop Grumman Corporation
NOV INC
Novanta INC
Nuova Idropress - Societa’ PER Azioni IN Forma Abbreviata NIP S.P.A.
NVE Corporation
Officina Bocedi SRL
Officina Meccanica F.Lli Tabarelli S.P.A.
Onto Innovation Inc.
Oshkosh Corporation
Oxford Instruments PLC
Oy El-Ho Ab
Paccar INC
Park Aerospace Corp.
Paul Mueller Company
Petards Group PLC
Pietro Fiorentini S.P.A.
Ponsse OYJ
Portsmouth Aviation Holdings Limited
Powell Industries INC
Presses et Cisailles Lefort *
PSM Projekt System & Management Gmbh
PVA Tepla AG
Qinetiq Group PLC
Raute OYJ *
Renishaw PLC
REV Group, Inc.
Rheinmetall AG
Robson Handling Technology Limited *
Rockwell Automation, Inc.
Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft
Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC
RTX Corp
Saab AB
Saalasti Oy
Safran
Salmoiraghi S.P.A.
SC Group-Global Limited
Schlatter Industries AG
Schmitt - Elevadores, LDA
Servotronics INC *
Servovalve S.P.A. *
Siemens AG
Skako A/S
Smiths Group PLC
Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. *
Star Refrigeration Limited *
Systemair AB
TAI Milano S.P.A.
Taylor Devices INC
Teagle Holdings Limited *
Teledyne Technologies Incorporated
Tennant CO
Teradyne INC
Terex Corp
Tesmec SPA
Textron INC
Thales
THE Shyft Group, Inc.
Thwaites Limited
Thyssenkrupp AG
Tiber Pack S.P.A.
Tomra Systems ASA
Tornado Global Hydrovacs Ltd.
Trakm8 Holdings PLC *
Transdigm Group Incorporated (J)
Trinity Industries INC
Triumph Group INC
Tronrud Engineering AS
TTM Technologies INC
Twin Disc INC
Vaisala OYJ
Veeco Instruments INC
Vicinity Motor Corp. *
Wabash National Corp
Wacker Neuson SE
Wartsila OYJ * (J)
Washtec AG
Wilton Universal Group Limited *
Woodward, Inc.
Xylem Inc.

‘*’ Indicates that the company is a loss-maker in the year.

(J) indicates a company which was not in the group last year but has been added this year.