Leonardo has formed a partnership with UK scale-up Uplift360 to develop recycled carbon fibre from defence platforms and production waste, as part of efforts to strengthen supply chain resilience and reduce reliance on virgin materials.
The collaboration will combine Leonardo’s expertise in certification, testing and platform integration with Uplift360’s composite recycling technology, with the aim of creating a domestic supply of regenerated carbon fibre sourced from end-of-life defence assets and manufacturing by-products, according to the company.
Leonardo said it will support the accreditation of recycled materials and work towards integrating them into its UK supply chain, aligning with broader defence priorities around resilience and material security. The initiative also reflects increasing attention on the availability of critical raw materials, particularly where supply chains are exposed to geopolitical risk.
The partnership forms part of Leonardo’s SME Collaboration Partner Programme, which is intended to help smaller firms scale technologies into operational defence use, including through qualification and integration into aerospace and security systems.
Previous work between the two companies has included the recycling of a decommissioned helicopter rotor blade into a structural drone component, demonstrating the potential to repurpose complex composite materials into new defence applications using lower-energy processes.
Uplift360 is planning to scale its capability with a pilot facility expected to produce up to three tonnes of recycled carbon fibre annually, representing an early step towards industrial-scale output and eventual qualification for wider aerospace and defence use.
Professor Simon Harwood, UK Capability Director at Leonardo, said “by combining Leonardo’s platform expertise and assurance capability with Uplift360’s innovative recycling technology, we can… strengthen the UK’s sovereign access to critical materials.”
Uplift360 chief executive Sam Staincliffe added that the partnership aims to “transform end-of-life defence assets into high-performance materials that can be reused across future platforms.”
