Canadian space company CATALYST has established a UK hub in Harwell, an area known as the UK’s space gateway, alongside more than 100 organisations linked to the commercial space industry.
A recent rebrand of PCI Geomatics, CATALYST works closely with satellite data providers to support their delivery of foundational image products and insights to a wide range of customers across multiple sectors, leveraging the benefits of being positioned in Low Earth Orbit to provide fast and efficient data that can not only save money, but save lives.
Recent operational implementations of CATALYST technology span image processing and delivery of data layers. These solutions have helped assess and address several applications including severe pipeline leaks, identifying pre-cursory motion at tailings storage facilities in mines, and the stability of structures surrounding large hydroelectric dams.
This information, along with the millions of images processed each day for satellite operators, has helped to better characterise the impacts of accelerating climate change effects globally and assist with operational risk reduction for critical asset owners and operators.
In addition to Harwell, the company is exploring a supplementary location in Edinburgh, due to the city’s heritage in space data and artificial intelligence, underpinned by academic strength, access to skills, and a thriving EO start-up community.
During this week’s Space-Comm Expo in Glasgow, CATALYST’s President and CEO June McAlarey was joined by the company’s first new UK employee, Yusuf Ibrahim-Zai, to meet with several existing industry partners, as well as forging new relationships with future partners.
“There’s no doubt that having a footprint in the UK will help us better serve our local and Europe-wide partners, both the satellite data providers that use our image processing technology and the end-user customers accessing our analyzed data to help with their decision making,” said McAlarey. “I’m confident we’ve found the right place to build visibility in our work and grow our business across Europe and further afield.”
“We welcome CATALYST’s decision to establish a formal presence in the UK and are delighted that they have joined UKspace as a way of connecting with the UK industry and contributing to our work growing the UK space sector,” said the Executive Director of UKspace.
CATALYST’s strategic international push will continue in the weeks ahead. The company will join global space sector leaders in Paris for World Space Business Week and the largest rail transport conference in the world, InnoTrans, in Berlin.
