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May 6, 2015 — Leading sustainability software and data firm Ecometrica has launched a new technology which allows government departments and firms to analyse complex data from satellites without the need for supercomputers for the first time.
Ecometrica chairman, Dr Richard Tipper, today announced the delivery of the new Cube+ at the UK Space Centre, Harwell. A combination of software and customised cloud computing hardware, the groundbreaking system allows sequential images taken by satellites to be built up layer upon layer, quickly and efficiently, to provide a much more detailed, and in-depth answers to complex queries about changes to agriculture, forests, coasts and urban areas.
Cube+ is aimed at the growing global market in Earth observation information products, which Ecometrica estimates is worth around £600m today and is projected to double over the next decade. Clients are expected to include space agencies, homeland security and disaster response, as well as firms working in agriculture and forestry, infrastructure investors and planners.
Cube+ will provide a more powerful service than those currently available using supercomputers, at around a tenth of the cost.
Dr Tipper said: “This new Ecometrica technology component will allow businesses to efficiently process complex time-space data queries across the globe. It brings complex information retrieval tasks on spatial data that would previously have required supercomputers within the reach of conventional commercial cloud services.
“It will provide significant cost savings and improvements in scaleability across a wide range of sectors which are now using satellite data to enhance their understanding of the world they operate in.”
Dr Tipper said the new product will help accelerate Ecometrica’s growth, particularly in the civilian commercial sector. The company expects to secure clients in Brazil, Mexico and the UK, with around £200,000 of sales forecast for the first year. Cube+ will be available as a capital item, with Ecometrica also providing support and additional services.
