CATALYST – the former PCI Geomatics – recently opened an office in Harwell, U.K. in a hub of commercial businesses, within reach of London and what the company says are 100 space sector firms in the city.
The Markham, Ont.-based company focuses on image processing optimization, which means providing products for Earth observation image and analytics firms to address workflows for metrics including accuracy, quality and scalability, according to CATALYST’s website. The company also does risk mitigation data-as a-service for ground displacement of infrastructure, especially infrastructure affected by climate change.
Prior to opening the U.K. office, CATALYST also established presences in Gatineau, Quebec (just minutes from Ottawa across the Ottawa River) and in Arlington, Virginia (a short drive from Washington, D.C. and its space industry.) CATALYST is also eyeing a second U.K. office in Edinburgh, although that decision has not yet been finalized.
SpaceQ spoke with June McAlarey, President and CEO of CATALYST, to obtain more details about the announcement and the implications for the business.
SpaceQ: What will this expansion do in the UK in terms of access to customers and opportunities? What do you plan to do first – in the next six months – to take advantage of this opportunity and how will it affect your bottom line?
McAlarey: The expansion provides CATALYST with closer proximity to our customers in Europe and the opportunity to have team members “on the ground” to engage with key stakeholders in the region, ensuring we can react quickly to opportunities and the demand for our services. Ultimately, space is a global sector and we’ve been involved in the U.K. and wider European market for a long time, so adding resources locally is a logical step for growing the business.
Our initial plans are focused around gathering knowledge, meeting current and future customers, and getting to know the ecosystem’s key players across industry, government and academia. Connections are always important, and we’ve already had positive discussions with the UK Space Agency, the Science and Technology Facilities Council, Scottish Enterprise, UKspace, the U.K. Department for Business and Trade, and many of the other support agencies across the U.K. We will now be focusing on finding end users for our services that are located outside of the space sector, whilst also meeting with manufacturers of Earth observation satellites.
SpaceQ: Harwell has many space companies with which you can do business, but it’s also about two hours from London by train and I would imagine, somewhat less accessible for international trade opportunities. Can you explain in a little more detail the benefits of being in this location, as opposed to setting up to, say, Edinburgh first, as that is a location you named in the release?
McAlarey: Harwell is the largest space cluster in the UK and home to many of the sector’s key players. As you mention, it is also where many of our customers are based. Therefore, it made sense to start there and be part of that ecosystem with its various opportunities for engagement and networking.
SpaceQ: When will you make a decision about Edinburgh, and on what metrics are you measuring whether to make it?
McAlarey: Edinburgh has a strong heritage in Earth observation and is less than an hour away. Glasgow (editor’s note – this is one hour away from Edinburgh) builds more small satellites than anywhere outside of North America, with companies like Spire, AAC Clyde Space, Alba Orbital and Craft Prospect. We’ve been meeting with Scottish Development International to learn more about what’s happening in the country, and have been impressed by the growth of the space community in Scotland. To stay up-to-date on what’s happening in the U.K., it makes sense to explore more than one location, as there are multiple clusters all offering different capabilities and addressing different gaps in the market. I attended Space-Comm Expo Scotland recently to support the decision-making process, and we hope to announce a small additional U.K. presence very soon.
SpaceQ: Have you hired new employees at your new location? How many, if so? How many employees do you now – after any hires – have worldwide?
McAlarey: We have already hired our first full-time U.K. employee, and are looking to fill additional positions at the moment.
SpaceQ: Can you put this news in context with some of CATALYST’s recent projects? Which is to say, how will this benefit CATALYST in some of the other news that you have announced recently?
McAlarey: We have a recent case study on monitoring for ground displacement for a water utility company. (Editor’s note: it was concerning satellite-based monitoring of ground displacement in water utility distribution networks.)
SpaceQ: Anything else you want to add?
McAlarey: We have extensive global industry outreach, with strong engagement from both upstream and downstream executives at key market events. Stay tuned for upcoming announcements on technology advancements and partnerships.
