New solutions thanks to know-how from the space industry: businesses get a ‘lift to space’
Bern, 04.02.2015 - The European Space Agency ESA and the international Lift Conference in Geneva, one of Europe’s key events about innovation and digital technologies, are joining forces this year: between 4 and 6 February the ESA will be holding its annual ARTES Applications Workshop event in conjunction with the Lift Conference. Firms at the event from Switzerland and abroad will be getting a ‘Lift to Space’. The aim is to harness knowledge and findings from space research in the development of new solutions for the digital age. The event is being co-hosted by AP-Swiss, a platform to promote space applications financed by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI.
Applications and services based on space infrastructure are a key driver of growth and entrepreneurship reaching far into the field of digital technologies and present interesting market opportunities.
There are three key areas in the programming of the event at the Lift Conference: firstly, injecting inspiration from outside the space community; secondly, tapping into the creative potential of businesses in the digital sector to develop new solutions; thirdly to inform businesses and the broader public about the potential of space infrastructure and its application to daily life.
Examples shown during ‘Lift to Space’ span from space infrastructure based services for MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) in Africa’s emerging economies to solutions for new forms of unmanned air transport of goods, or to small and micro satellites as potential enablers for new services for the global digital economy. Dedicated examples with a Swiss perspective will also be presented and discussed: these include applications for the Alpine region or for use in humanitarian aid, such as in mine clearance.
“With this event, we are opening up and significantly broadening the network for space researchers and entrepreneurs,” says Johann Richard, Programme Manager for Technology, Telecommunications and Navigation at SERI’s Space Office. “As the network grows, so does its power to create new connections and to match end user communities with the entrepreneurs from Lift and the space community. We’re here to transform the best ideas into potential products and services, and ultimately enable the creation of new business opportunities.” Hosting this event in Switzerland further underlines the importance of applications in the context of the Swiss Space Implementation Plan.
As a founding member of the ESA, Switzerland contributes around CHF 160 million to the agency’s activities every year. This investment allows the federal institutes of technology, universities, universities of applied science and Swiss industry to be involved in space missions at various levels, from cutting-edge scientific research to the development of prototypes, industrialisation and to the development of applications.Address for enquiries
Johann Richard, SERFI
Technology, Telecommunications and Navigation Programme Manager
johann.richard@sbfi.admin.ch, Tel. +41 58 465 58 95
Publisher
State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation
http://www.sbfi.admin.ch
