According to a new report by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (
www.imeche.org), the UK will miss out on the chance to capture £40 billion of business for the global space market and 100,000 new jobs if both the Government and industry do not address the problem of restrictive regulations, barriers to investment, the growing skills shortages in engineering and science, and fragmented collaboration between stake-holders.
Seeking resolution: Growing the UK small-satellite industry reveals that the sector is being hampered due to issues such as outdated and complex launch and operation licence regimes and expensive third-party liability insurance.
Helen Meese, Head of Engineering in Society at the Institution, said: “Small satellites are not only transforming sectors such as agriculture, conservation, energy production and disaster relief; they also represent a huge business opportunity for the UK. This country has the potential to build a £40 billion space industry by 2030, but work needs to be done to simplify regulation and boost the number of people entering the space industry, or we risk losing business overseas.
“Funding is currently spread too thinly across academic institutions, so more needs to be done by the various Research Councils to boost investment in innovative satellite research. The Institution is also calling for the UK Space Agency to simplify its licensing regime to enable more SMEs to enter the market and to end expensive third-party liability.
“There is also much more that needs to be done by Government to boost STEM careers and increase the number of undergraduates, graduates and professional engineers taking up jobs in the UK space industry.
“In order to enable the sector to flourish, the Government should be looking to increase the amount of money made available to SMEs through the Satellite Finance Network from £20 million to £70 million over the next five years.”