Value Chain Analysis for Graphene and 2D Materials Industry Commissioned

***** THIS IS AN AWARD NOTICE, NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION ***** This procurement is being concluded following a mini competition under the Crown Commercial Services RM6126 Research & Insights DPS Brief Description of Requirement Project Overview: DSIT's Advanced Materials team are seeking to commission a value chain analysis for Graphene/2-d materials to provide insights into where current national strengths lie, and where future opportunities for growth/sovereignty can be exploited as the Graphene industry reaches maturity.

Furthermore, we know from a National Security perspective, disruption and/or coercion regarding critical inputs could undermine national growth and technological progress. Conducting value-chain analysis will both reveal growth levers and potential vulnerabilities, allowing UK HMG to act accordingly.

More broadly, the primary output of this work will enable DSIT to produce data-driven, executable policy recommendations that foster secure resilient growth in this IS8 frontier industry.

Having a Value-Chain mapped for Graphene will broadly enable HMG to: o Maintaining material leadership will reinforce the UK's global reputation in graphene related ventures and support broader R&D, commercial, and innovative ecosystems. o Securing domestic capability will reduce reliance on foreign supply chains and serve to enhance national sovereignty ambitions.

o Providing support for UK businesses to integrate graphene into critical growth sectors, driving forward national productivity and competitiveness. Expected outcome: To utilise the value-chain to conduct further analysis around Own Collaborate Access (OCA). The Value Chain will tell HMG where critical activities are, and the OCA will reveal how to secure capabilities for such activities.

Thus, commissioning/outsourcing the work of producing a value-chain will jumpstart this piece towards demystifying strategic areas for the UK to exploit, against a backdrop where the graphene industry is accelerating into its maturity. I also hope more broadly that this 'analytical framework' will be easily transferable in conducting future analysis on other IS8 frontier sectors.