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Space and technology leaders call on Leicester students and SMEs to join UK space industry

Space and technology leaders call on Leicester students and SMEs to join UK space industry

  • The University of Nottingham and UK space leaders arrive in Leicester today searching for local students and entrepreneurs with new ideas of how to use satellite data such as GPS in smart phone apps and location technologies
     
  • Financial backing and mentoring on offer to turn winning ideas into profitable businesses and services to help meet Government ambitions for a £40 billion UK space industry
     
  • Registrations for UK Satellite Navigation Competition University Challenge open here - http://www.ukesnc.com/


Thursday 6 June 2013

UK space and technology leaders arrive in Leicester today searching for local students, young researchers and SMEs with innovative ideas for the everyday use of space data in smart phone apps, location-based services and profitable new businesses.

Part of the UK Satellite Navigation Competition’s University Challenge, competition organisers from the University of Nottingham will be talking to local students and entrepreneurs at the HUB:BLE-1 event, held at the Curve Theatre, to give them the chance to prove their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit in return for some valuable business tips from the experts.

The UK Satellite Navigation Competition University Challenge is run by the University of Nottingham’s GRACE centre of excellence in satellite navigation in conjunction with the Satellite Applications Catapult and the Technology Strategy Board and sponsored by the UK Space Agency, EADS Astrium, The European Space Agency's Business Incubation Centre - Harwell, CGI, Inmarsat, The University of Surrey, Swindell & Pearson and The Royal Institute of Navigation. It forms part of the globally run European Satellite Navigation Competition that has been searching for the best application ideas for global satellite navigation systems (GNSS) such as GPS or Galileo since 2004.

It includes the University Challenge, a special prize that calls upon students and young researchers with their own innovative idea to submit a short proposal for the chance to win up to £10,000 worth of prizes including capital investment, office space, patent advice, and introductions to industry partners and funding opportunities.

Chancellor George Osborne has identified the UK space industry as one of eight technology areas the UK will aim to become a world leader in with a pledge to grow the domestic sector currently worth £9bn to £40bn by 2030.

The commercial use of satellite data represents one area of significant potential and last year the UK government’s increased contribution to the European Space Agency, worth £1.3 billion, included a threefold increase in funding for the commercialisation of satellite positioning and timing data.

Entries for the University Challenge and the main competition can take the form of any potential use of satellite navigation in any area - from logistics and healthcare all the way to mobile apps and games.

Last year’s global ESNC University Challenge winner – Access On - was developed by two Portuguese students and allows any member of the public who come across an area posing an accessibility problem for people with physical impairments to almost instantly log it and upload its position and details to a website.

Today’s workshop is one of several being run at UK universities across the country over the coming weeks. Students will be joined by experts from the UKSNC, the Satellite Application Catapult and former competition entrants including local businesses, Instantview (http://instantview.co/), to explain the commercial potential in UK space and satellite data and opportunities to turn their ideas into profitable businesses.

Anyone interested in entering this year’s competition can submit their ideas until 31st June 2013 at - www.ukesnc.com

Quotes

Doug Watson, UK Satellite Navigation Competition University Challenge organiser at the University of Nottingham said: “The UK’s commercial space sector, and especially the part linked to satellite data, represents a great opportunity for these Leicester students and researchers to start their own business, with significant government and technical support on offer and a wealth of potential markets that could benefit from precise time keeping and positioning. In running the University Challenge and today’s workshop we are not looking for satellite experts or established space industry leaders. Instead the best business ideas we come across are from people with their own area of interest and personal expertise, whether its farming, fishing or football, who have seen the benefits satellite navigation data could bring to this community. These are the people we are hoping to see today and we hope will enter their ideas into our competition.”

Dr Ed Chester, Project Manager at the University of Leicester’s Space Ideas Hub said: "Space activities in Leicester are diverse, with growing business-focussed applications of space technology. Initiatives such as Space IDEAS Hub and G-STEP can help businesses leverage technologies and assets. The European Satellite Navigation Competition is a unique opportunity to get a whole package of support for your innovative idea. The competition requires you to focus clearly describing your idea, which in itself is a great step to take, and the kind of focus you need to have in preparing a business plan or pitching for investment. There is so much more scope for innovating in this sector and some potential applications, in gaming, in education, in policy work, in law, in finance, in resource management, in safety, in sports... there's almost no excuse for not having a great idea."


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