Joining SmartSat CRC, the participants agree to team-up according to each member’s expertise and interest in a variety of projects. Leonardo Australia's involvement in SmartSat CRC means added investment by the industry and added transfer of proven technologies to Australia to jointly raise the global space technology to unparalleled levels.
Michael Lenton, chairman of Leonardo Australia, welcomed the announcement, stating, "As an Australian, I am totally committed to growing our company into a valuable local industrial asset contributing in knowledge and employment. The SmartSat CRC is a powerful vehicle for helping position Australian industry and the Australian Space Agency in the centre of the global space scenario. Leonardo is proud to be part of it."
The announcement came during the 9th Australian Space Forum in Adelaide, with the attendance of the Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the ambassador of Italy Francesca Tardioli and the president of the Italian Space Agency Giorgio Saccoccia.
SmartSat CRC general manager Andy Koronios welcomed Leonardo's partnership, stating that the pooling of global space technologies, knowledge and investment will produce results far quicker and leap frog understanding and applications in infinite areas.
Leonardo Australia is establishing an industrial presence in Adelaide and, as a first step, it will be supporting Leonardo's geospatial imagery company e-GEOS (a joint venture between Telespazio and the Italian Space Agency) in its contribution of funds and know-how to the SmartSat CRC.
Bruno Versini, e-GEOS chief operating officer, said, "e-GEOS will bring its ‘out of the box’ thinking in satellite radar and hyperspectral imagery to the infinite fields of application in Australian society – maritime surveillance, mining, better agriculture even environmental monitoring as a critical element of bushfire prevention and damage assessment."
SmartSat CRC is a consortium of universities and other research organisations, partnered with industry, that has been funded by the Australian government to develop know-how and technologies in advanced satellite telecommunications and IoT connectivity, intelligent satellite systems and Earth observation next-generation data services aiming to develop intellectual property and a specialist industry expertise that will spawn new businesses, create export economic value and generate new high-tech jobs for all Australians.
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