RIYADH: Rolls-Royce, which has most of its in-country workforce consisting of citizens, has highlighted the importance of Saudization in supporting the Kingdom’s defense readiness.

Cate Wilkinson, senior vice president at Rolls-Royce PLC Middle East, told Arab News on the sidelines of the World Defense Show recently that the company’s Saudization level is “over 80 percent” in the Kingdom, with figures varying by site.

“Depending on whether or not we’re talking about our MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) facility in Taif or more generally, we are well over 82 percent, nearly 90 percent,” she said.

Wilkinson said the company focuses on developing local talent as a part of that push. “We take talented Saudis from fresh out of school, and we give them skills and help them grow.”

She said localization strengthens the company’s day-to-day processes inside the Kingdom. “We are integrated within the nation. We are there to support it regardless of what happens.”

“Having a Saudi team doing work on Saudi engines is really key for us.”

Wilkinson said predictive maintenance — anticipating problems before they happen — has become essential for fleet availability and mission readiness.

“Predictive maintenance and digital twinning is mission critical for our fleet these days.”

She explained that digital twin technology helps Rolls-Royce monitor performance and anticipate deterioration, improving planning and sustainment.

“Digital-twinning technology helps us understand how the engine is working and how the engine is deteriorating, which means we can provide a better, more cost-effective service to the customer.”

Wilkinson said she is seeing increased demand from Saudi Arabia customers for more integrated approaches, linked to the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 trajectory.

“There’s a lot of opportunity to do things better, to become more integrated and support the defense of Saudi Arabia,” she said.

As an example of Rolls-Royce’s footprint beyond aviation, Wilkinson pointed to the company’s maritime engine base.

“We have about 450 reciprocating engines in the Saudi Navy, Coast Guard and fleets,” she said.

Wilkinson added that it is an area the company has not historically highlighted as much, but sees as increasingly important.

On sustainability, Wilkinson said: “Sustainable fuels is something that we’ve been looking at across the whole of the group for quite a number of years.”

From a defense perspective, she said the company has been working with air forces on reciprocating engines — particularly in the UK and US.

“Within the reciprocating engine side of things, we’re looking at alternative fuels … so it wouldn’t necessarily be diesel going forward,” she said.

Wilkinson argued that sustainability in defense must be broader than fuel efficiency alone. “It’s not just about sustainable aviation fuels.”

She added that defense organizations want to move toward a more sustainable future.

“It’s not just about the fuel they burn. It’s about what you do with them afterwards,” Wilkinson said. “It’s all the way through the life cycle, it’s disposal as well.”