Leicestershire, UK, 02 November 2009 - James Eddy, Technical Director of aerial survey company Bluesky, has been appointed Chairman of a steering group providing advice and guidance to G-STEP a University of Leicester service designed to maximise the use of satellite imagery by businesses.
G-STEP (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) - Space Technology Exchange Partnership) will build on the work of the flagship, multi billion euro European Commission / European Space Agency programme GMES.
The role of G-STEP is to work in partnership with business to support them in the pioneering use and development of Earth Observation data projects.
'With the establishment of G-STEP some of the biggest barriers to the wider use of satellite data in the UK have been addressed. Namely knowledge, ease of access and relevance to business operation,' commented Adam Edwards, G-STEP Business Manager. 'Earth Observation technology is currently under exploited yet has the potential to revolutionise business in a similar manner to the information technology expansion.'
'Bluesky are expected to be one of the pioneering businesses highlighting the potential of Earth Observation data and technologies and James is providing valuable insights as to how G-STEP needs to position itself to develop the market,' continued Edwards.
'This appointment is a real honour,' added James Eddy. 'Earth Observation data is not just about expensive satellites orbiting the earth it also covers data from aircraft and ground observations too. With more than 20 years experience developing and maximising the use of remotely sensed data I hope that I can help other businesses derive value and benefit from its exploitation.'
G-STEP draws on the substantial expertise and knowledge base established within the University of Leicester's wide ranging scientific programme in Earth Observation (EO) which already has strong connections to GMES. It will also draw strategic partners, such as Bluesky, into the knowledge-exchange hub to provide immediate access to a broad range of applications for non-EO and EO specialist companies.
G-STEP can broker existing solutions through its extensive knowledge of the EO data, information and commercial industry contacts. It can provide partnership, as appropriate, to develop new EO solutions for customer needs.
It can also set up collaborative projects with some seed funding for new developments for downstream products and services or innovative new applications. G-STEP is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through EMDA (East Midlands Development Agency), the Leicester Shire Economic Partnership (LSEP) and the University of Leicester.
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Notes to Editor:
Bluesky is a UK-based specialist in aerial imaging and remote sensing data collection and processing.An internationally recognised leader with projects extending around the globe, Bluesky is proud to work with prestigious organisations such as Google, the BBC and Government Agencies.
Bluesky has unrivalled expertise in the creation of seamless, digital aerial photography, 3D landscape/cityscape visualisations and prints and also runs a national mapping centre, providing digital mapping, satellite imagery and aerial photography including ultra-high resolution imagery of cities and towns.
G-STEP (GMES Space and Technology Exchange Partnership) is a University of Leicester-based knowledge-exchange hub to support and accelerate business and policy exploitation of Earth Observation (EO) data and information services. G-STEP will innovate, partner and broker the developments of new EO applications for its client base.
G-STEP is a business-facing service platform established in 2009 to support business and public sector organisations in the use of state-of-the-art Earth Observation information technology. The exploitation of this technology is expected to have a major impact on business operations and competitiveness.
G-STEP seeks to connect with businesses and organisations to support them in pioneering GMES product development (sourcing business) and in utilising GMES services in commercial and business applications (supporting business). This project is the first GMES accelerator initiative in the UK.