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Meet ESA BIC Lazio



ESA BIC Lazio is funded by local Government of Regione Lazio and by Italian Space Agency (ASI) and it is managed by Lazio Innova SpA.

This story is part of our new Story Series: Meet ESA Space Solutions Network. In this new series, we’re going to introduce you to the great teams across our Network that are using space to develop business applied in daily life. Curious about their highlights and advice? Read on.

Who is ESA BIC Lazio?  

ESA BIC Lazio was founded in 2006 in the framework of Regione Lazio’s policy to foster technology transfer and innovation. BIC Lazio (today Lazio Innova) then launched a new incubator for high-tech start-ups in Rome and thanks to the relationship established with ESA's ESRIN facility, young researchers were encouraged to create the first ESA BIC Lazio start-up. Over time, more than 40 business projects based on the use of space technologies have been supported.

ESA BIC Lazio programme is funded by local Government of Regione Lazio and by Italian Space Agency. Credits: ESA BIC Lazio

Tell us about the people in your team and what strength/added value do you bring through.

Luigi Campitelli is the Innovation Hubs Director in Lazio Innova. No one in the company has such in-depth knowledge about the ESA BIC instrument as a tool for economic development and how the ESA BICs and start-ups can be the real protagonists in open innovation processes.

Roberto Giuliani is the Incubator Manager, with a background in economics and business management. He represents the historical memory and the man who firmly holds the reins of the ESA BIC Lazio ecosystem, made up of start-ups, SMEs, industrial players, universities and research centres.

Andrea Cosentino is ESA BIC Lazio’s tutor, with a background in finance. He is the friend of start-ups and is always ready to give them good advice. Andrea has been working in ESA BIC Lazio since the beginning and his empathy has made him one of the best-known colleagues among the oldest ESA BICs in the Network.

Valentina Diana is a Project Manager at ESA BIC Lazio with a background in political science and a long experience in technology transfer. She is keen on applications of space technologies to solve world problems. She is a very active supporter of space start-ups in Europe.

What about our values? To support the same vision and direction, to be passionate and to have fun in our jobs, don't let things happen but make them happen.

What has inspired you to work in the space industry? 

The Lazio region has the entire value chain present, from upstream to downstream. This made it possible for us to find very fertile ground to sprout, enlarging the ESA BIC Lazio ecosystem more and more to several stakeholders, from policy makers to universities and research centres, from large industrial players to innovative start-ups and teams able to find their “space” to launch innovative businesses.

Do you look for/have start-ups working to solve big world problems? 

At ESA BIC Lazio we know that space technologies enable us to solve big world problems. Through this awareness we have firstly inspired and then supported the great ideas of our start-ups, such as those facing the problem of water leaks in aqueducts using satellite images or monitoring the safety and the health of workers in remote areas through integrated GNSS and satcom solutions.

Please present examples of startups incubated by ESA BIC Lazio and what are they doing. 

Earth Observation:

Nhazca (alumnus) - is a service company within the framework of the analysis, management and/or mitigation of geological risks, monitoring deformation by terrestrial SAR interferometry.

Technology transfer:

Airgloss Prosense (alumnus) - detects a wide range of airborne contaminants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and autonomously controls heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) and air purification systems.  Airgloss MultiSensing Technology was initially developed for the safety of astronauts on the International Space Station.

GNSS:

SpaceExe (alumnus) - is a space technology company passionate about the design and development of Internet of Things solutions (IoT) based on GNSS and telecommunication devices. They offer simple cost-effective solutions to complex problems.

Upstream:

Arca Dynamics (incubatee) - is a new space company based in Rome providing space traffic management and Earth observation services using proprietary nanosatellites (cubesats).

Lazio represents one of the European regions where space represents one of the key sectors that will contribute to the post-COVID economic recovery. Credits: ESA BIC Lazio

Would you like to share an interesting/inspiring story from one of your alumni?  

Indeed, we would like to share the stories of many of our alumni and it would seem disrespectful talking about one in particular. We can start with Terradue, our first incubatee and the story of two Portuguese researchers, who came to Italy in 2005 to work in ESRIN for the development of grid processing on-demand (G-POD), realising a set of products for earth observation applications. Today they manage a successful business in Earth science services, tailored for data-intensive applications and lead an international team.

What is your advice for aspiring entrepreneurs? 

Space represents a key sector for the recovery of the post-COVID-19 world economy. The space industries have always produced technologies and applications that are very important for our common life. Today, a new business launched in the space economy does not only represent an opportunity to create value due to the important effects also in the non-space sectors, but it represents an opportunity to attract more private capitals in a sector no longer funded mainly by public and government investments. 

Using one word, how would you describe the ESA Space Solutions community?  

One word? Martian! (MAsterful, Robust, TIreless, ANimated)

How would you solve problems if you were from Mars? 

If we were on Mars, we would have already solved the problem of finding another planet where humanity could live!

What is your website link where the readers can find more about you? 

The European Space Agency Business Incubation Centre in Lazio (Italy) - ESA BIC Lazio is funded by local Government of Regione Lazio and by Italian Space Agency (ASI) and it is managed by Lazio Innova SpA.

Check out www.lazioinnova.it 

 

ABOUT ESA SPACE SOLUTIONS

ESA Space Solutions is the go-to place for great business ideas involving space in all areas of society and economy. Our mission is to support entrepreneurs in Europe in the development of business using satellite applications and space technology to improve everyday life. ESA Space Solutions is designed to provide multiple entry points such as ESA Business Incubation Centres (ESA BICs), ESA Technology Broker Network, ESA Business Applications Ambassadors and ESA Business Applications programme. Funding typically ranges from €50k to €2M and supports everything from technology transfer, business incubation, Feasibility Studies to large-scale Demonstration Projects.

 

16 September 2021
Last updated at 28 October 2021 - 15:02