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On Monday 22 September, we held our final Lift Off session of 2025, with Accessibility as our central theme.

This session supported Heathrow’s vision of becoming an extraordinary airport, fit for the future – one that is fully accessible for all passengers. It aligns with our commitment to delivering Excellent Service and Operations, and achieving service equivalence across all passenger experiences.

We invited innovative SMEs to showcase solutions that help remove barriers and empower passengers to feel safe, independent, and confident throughout their journey. The event focused on several key areas:

• Sensory Mitigation Solutions – including calming spaces, acoustic design, and ways to reduce visual noise from digital displays.
• Navigation Aids – enabling passengers to independently find spaces that meet their personal needs, such as quiet zones or proximity to amenities.
• Accessible Retail and F&B – exploring universally accessible self-service options that accommodate a wide range of physical and cognitive needs.
• Inclusive Communication – improving awareness of tailored journey options through innovative mediums like interactive videos or community-generated content.
• Enablement Hubs – reimagining passive waiting zones to offer more fulfilling and inclusive experiences for passengers with reduced mobility.

To top it all off, earlier this month, Lift Off was recognised with a CIPS Award for ‘Best Initiative to Build a Diverse Supply Base’ – a fantastic achievement that celebrates the power of collaboration between Heathrow and the SME community.

By partnering with agile, forward-thinking businesses, Heathrow continues to drive innovation that supports both operational excellence and inclusive passenger experiences.

Apply for future Lift Off events and learn more by clicking the link below:

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On Friday 20 June, we held our second Lift Off session of 2025, with Sustainability as our central theme.

This session focused on supporting Heathrow’s vision of becoming a zero waste, nature-positive airport – a key part of our updated Connecting People and Planet sustainability strategy and our roadmap to 2030.

We invited innovative SMEs to showcase forward-thinking solutions that could help us reduce environmental impact, enhance resource efficiency, and create greener, more resilient spaces across the Heathrow campus. The event focused on two key areas:

• Circular Economy and Waste – including technologies for improving waste segregation, reusable coffee cup alternatives, and smart data solutions for better waste tracking.
• Nature Positive – covering remote biodiversity monitoring, data-led greenspace management, and ideas to bring nature into terminal spaces to enhance passenger wellbeing.

By partnering with agile, forward-thinking businesses, Heathrow continues to drive innovation that supports both operational excellence and environmental stewardship.

Apply for future Lift Off events and learn more by clicking the link below:

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On Friday 14 March, we held our first Lift Off session of the year. This event’s theme focused on prioritising the Health, Safety, and Wellbeing of colleagues, passengers, and the wider community – a commitment that Heathrow remains dedicated to. This underpins the airport’s efficient operations, secure environment, and sustainable growth, aligning with our Foundation ‘Safety, Security and Compliance.’ 

To continuously enhance its approach and stay ahead of emerging challenges, Heathrow is actively exploring innovative technologies and solutions in key areas, including: 

1. Hazard risk assessment and investigation 
2. Manual handling, fatigue and workplace abuse prevention 
3. Health and safety in infrastructure projects 
4. Robotic and autonomous solutions 
5. Colleague well-being. 

By embracing forward-thinking solutions, Heathrow aims to further strengthen its safety culture and ensure a healthier, safer future for all. 

Apply for future Lift Off events and learn more by clicking the link below:

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On Friday, 29 November, we hosted our fourth and final Lift Off event of the year, focusing on Surface Access solutions. The event aimed to spark meaningful conversations and drive progress in line with our People and Planet Beacon goals.

Attendees engaged in thought-provoking discussions on creating a more efficient, sustainable, and accessible future for Heathrow passengers. Topics included tracking passengers’ carbon footprints, moving away from paper tickets for terminal transfers, and public space design.

Innovative ideas and solutions were shared between SMEs and our Panel Members, concluding another successful chapter in fostering innovation and collaboration between SMEs and industry leaders.

Heathrow remains committed to driving meaningful change and creating a brighter, more sustainable future for our airport, ensuring we are fit for the future. The SME Engagement Team looks forward to building on this momentum in 2025.

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On 14 November, the 26th Heathrow Business Summit took place at the Radisson Blu Hotel Heathrow. The event, themed “Thriving together, making an airport fit for the future,” brought together local partners, SMEs, and Tier 1 suppliers to explore collaboration and growth opportunities.

Highlights included updates on Heathrow’s strategy, a focus on health, safety, and sustainability, and recognition of outstanding suppliers. The Summit emphasised the crucial role of SMEs in driving innovation and ensuring a sustainable future for Heathrow.

Check out the images and videos from this year’s Summit and watch the highlights video below.

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Thursday, 10 October saw the SME Engagement team hosted Heathrow’s third Lift Off event of 2024, which focused on energy efficiency.

This event saw the return of the Lift Off Learner’s Challenge, giving students from Harrow Richmond and Uxbridge College (HRUC) the opportunity to present their innovative ideas on how to enhance energy efficiency at Heathrow. This program provides invaluable experience for these students, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), fostering their growth and preparing them for rewarding careers in the aviation industry.

SME’s presented innovative technologies and solutions for improving energy efficiency, these included:

• Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC) Upgrades
• Upgrades to pressure sensors, temperature sensors and control valves etc. to be more energy efficient.
• Recommendations on improved local temperature control.
• Metering & Data
• New electricity, heat and water meters which could be installed, potentially reducing interruption to the power supply.
• How the existing metering data can be compiled and expanded for improved analysis to inform better efficiency.

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Heathrow’s SME Engagement team helped to successfully host and run the second Heathrow Lift Off Event this year, bringing together industry leaders and business owners. The event focused on shaping the future of passenger experience at Heathrow Airport. A highlight was the Lift Off Learner’s Challenge, where students from HRUC presented accessibility improvement ideas based on their own lived experiences. This program provided the students with valuable experience and helped prepare them for fruitful careers in aviation.

The remainder of the Lift Off event centered on the theme of “passenger experience.” It featured two segments:

• Independent Journeys – featuring captivating presentations by 360 Virtual Tours, Roma Medical Aids Ltd and iStrat Consulting to our panel of experts.
• Smooth Connections – with Pindar, Journeo and LB Foster showcasing their offerings, aligning with our refreshed strategy.

Apply for future Lift Off events and learn more by clicking the link below.

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The 25th edition of the Heathrow Business Summit was held on Thursday 16th November 2023 at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Heathrow.

As we marked our 25th anniversary, the event provided the opportunity to promote economic growth in our local community for SMEs, suppliers, and Heathrow strategic partners.

This event was once again be held in partnership with our local Chambers of Commerce and Business Groups, connecting local SMEs and Heathrow suppliers together to create future business opportunities. The delegates gained an insight into how working with Heathrow enables SMEs to play a central role in the airport’s operation and wider sustainable supply chain.

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Our Lift Off event is back, and on 22nd September we successfully held our third session of the year!

This event focused on data and technology solutions with our SMEs presenting exciting solutions to help Heathrow make progress across a range of topics from safety, bird strike management, baggage and waste. Our panel was particularly impressed by the level of innovation in the waste management sector, with some SMEs presenting solutions which could add huge value to a wider Team Heathrow community.

This event featured Onwave, Emu Analytics, The Edge Company, Limetrack, Vuala and vLOGIX whose presentations led to some fantastic discussions with our panel members: Paul Doherty, Steve Armitage, Rohail Latif, Jan Friend, Darren Smith, Alasdair Reid, Alan Maunder, Simone Gigli, Marc-Olivier Hilgers and Dean Wyeth.

Our Lift Off Q4 event will take place on 16 November. Keep an eye on our Upcoming Opportunities page by clicking the button below.

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