Following an award for funding provided as part of an initiative to help Britain’s small businesses achieve their exporting ambitions, Edinburgh- based Responsive Access has flown out to the SmallSat Symposium in California in search of partnerships and customers.
Under the banner of the Department for International Trade’s ‘Exporting is GREAT’ campaign, Heathrow Airport awarded a total of £40,000 in seed money to firms seeking funding for international trade missions and foreign market research. Responsive Access, part of a growing number of space sector start-up firms emerging throughout Scotland and the rest of the UK, is focused on simplifying access to space for small satellite customers looking to reach orbit in the near future.
The company, based at Edinburgh’s Royal Observatory building, is a participant in the ESA BIC UK, a prestigious business incubation programme funded by the European Space Agency and UK Science and Technology Facilities Council.
On the business’ most recent award, CEO Andrew Paliwoda stated, “We’re really excited to have the opportunity to travel to this event as it holds enormous potential for us to raise awareness about our project and source potential customers. Heathrow Airport and the DIT’s support, like the ESA funding we received previously, is something we’re immensely proud of. We can’t wait to show potential partners the results of the team’s hard work to date”. He added, “Our message to anyone looking to launch a payload into space is simple – let’s set up a meeting!”
As well as attending the event, the company is understood to have lined up visits to the facilities of a number of launch vehicle developers to discuss the formalisation of partnerships that will allow their customers to select the most suitable ride to orbit for their payloads. Ross Baker, Heathrow’s Chief Commercial Officer, said “Britain’s small businesses are the backbone of our economy and Heathrow is proud to stand behind them. Whether it’s a premium chocolate company from Yorkshire or Scottish company looking to cut the cost of space travel, this year’s winners set a new mark and we’re proud to be helping take their products to markets around the world”
[Responsive Access Ltd aims to simplify access to space through the use of innovative software and key partner relationships that provide a one-stop-shop for the launch of CubeSats and other small payloads into orbit. For more information visit http://www.responsiveaccess.com]
