Five entrepreneurs join NETPark space incubation programme

Five entrepreneurs have won coveted spots with a space incubation programme designed to help their businesses scale up, based at IASP member NETPark, UK.

The startups will each receive support from experts in areas such as marketing, law, financial management, business growth and IP protection thanks to a further £30,000 investment from the UK Space Agency.

The five businesses are:

• Viper RF, which designs and manufactures high frequency semiconductor and has started supplying custom designed chips into satellites to provide ‘Internet on the move’.
• aXenic, whose ultra high-speed optical modulators are used in the space sector for inter-satellite and ground-satellite links.
• Lexicon, which uses its AR and VR technology in education and has three year plans to develop its first satellite related project for the maritime sector.
• Scoutek Ltd, specialising in space and archaeological exploration technology.  Scoutek will use the incubator to develop their own miniature satellites, as well as small launch vehicles, micro-engineered space experiments and ground station "software-defined" radio receivers.
• Northern Space and Security, a new business to the sector currently developing unique capabilities for defence and space applications.

Catherine Johns, director of innovation and business growth at NETPark, said: “The North East is fast becoming a hub for innovative companies which are tapping into the space sector. They have the support they need to scale up here; the networks which are vital to secure funding and build peer relationships and access to world-class universities. The space incubation programme will help these five companies take their businesses to the next level.”

The investment in the programme builds on the significant impact the North East Satellite Applications Centre of Excellence, one of only five in the country and also based at NETPark, has already made.

Helen Roberts, regional growth manager at the UK Space Agency, said: “We are delighted to award this additional financial support to the North East Space Incubation Programme. We have successfully supported more than 30 new and innovative space companies across the regions, providing valuable jobs to the UK. The feedback from the supported companies has been extremely positive and the additional funding from the UK Space Agency will be used to stimulate further opportunities for startups by these experienced incubators.”