EARSeL Newsletter - EARSeL, European Association of Remote ...

EARSeL Newsletter September 2002 - Number 51
10
the European Space Incubators Network
(ESINET), launched this summer by the
European Space Agency (ESA) and the European
Commission (EC). It is Europe’s
first network of space business incubation
centres, and at present includes 20 incubators
in twelve European countries. With
33,000 employees and an annual turnover
of 5.5 billion, the space sector generates
many technologies and systems, which can
be used by entrepreneurs to develop new
products and new value-added services for
use in the non-space sectors.
Business incubators are committed to nurturing
entrepreneurs, start-ups and small
companies at an early stage in their ventures.
They offer access to finance, office
space and logistics, hands-on advice and
management assistance, help with recruitment
and marketing, and offer support for
legal aspects and services, etc. Bruno
Naulais continued: "It is a tough challenge
to get from a good idea to having a company
running successfully. Thanks to the
support of ESINET, start-ups should significantly
increase their survival rate."
ESA is supporting ESINET, a European network,
rather than a few national incubators,
since such a network falls nicely into
the frame of the ESA-EC common strategy
for space. Furthermore, a recent EU benchmark
study showed that the rate of success
of stand-alone incubators is lower and is,
therefore, less attractive to entrepreneurs.
ESINET includes 20 incubators in Belgium,
Bulgaria, Finland, France, Germany, Italy,
Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the
UK and the Ukraine.
For more information about ESINET, contact:
Bruno Naulais, European Space Incubators
Network Manager, Technology
Transfer and Promotion Office, European
Space Agency – ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1, PO
Box 299, 2200 AG Noordwijk, The Netherlands
(telephone: +31-71-5654711; fax: +31
71 565 3854; e-mail:bruno.naulais@esa.int;
web: www.esa.int/technology).
3.1.4 ESA’s New Media Support
Centre (NMSC)
The New Media Support Centre (NMSC),
an ESA initiative, offers a basis for innovation
and cross-fertilisation of ideas. It will
provide the support which businesses and
institutions need to manage the risk of exploring
new cross-discipline satellite technology.
To learn more about the NMSC and
express your interest in their facilities, visit
the NMSC web-site and fill in the on-line
questionnaire.
Applications support has been the starting
point of NMSC operations. NMSC is now
providing access to a number of basic facilities
such as satellite capacity, satellite
networks, terminals, a demonstration laboratory
for real-time or off-line demonstration
of applications and technical support
in the use of NMSC facilities. New capabilities
will be added over time. Particular
emphasis will be given to providing Systems
Simulations and satellite Terminals
Testing facilities. By filling in the NMSC
on-line questionnaire, potential users can
help the NMSC fine-tune their facilities to
meet user needs and market developments.
The test and development environment offered
by the NMSC is for services, applications
and equipment combining any of the
traditional telecommunications disciplines
(multimedia, mobile or broadcast), navigation
and Earth imaging, which employ
satellite communications in some form.
Some of the uses envisaged include telemedicine,
tele-education, advanced satellite
networks and satellite-based emergency
management systems. Read more at:
www.esa.int/export/esaSA/ESAKS0KE43
D_telecom_0.htm.
3.2 News from the EC
3.2.1 Monitoring Agriculture with RS:
news update
Guido Lemoine, JRC, Institute for Protection
and Security of the Citizen, Ispra, Italy (e-mail:
guido.lemoine@jrc.it)
With the eighth successive campaign coming
to its end, the "Control with Remote
Sensing" programme of the EU’s MARS
(Monitoring Agriculture with Remote
Sensing) project remains a mainstay in