Yesterday Crisa celebrated its XXV anniversary at its facilities in Tres Cantos, Madrid, with the inauguration of the Clean Room, where its equipment will be readied before being sent into space.
The inauguration of the Room, which has more than 1,500 square meters of space, was attended by representatives of various companies from the sector and the European Space Agency (ESA), the Community of Madrid’s Minister of Economy and Housing, Antonio Beteta, and the mayor of Tres Cantos, José Folgado.
Fernando Del Rey, CEO of Crisa, emphasized the achievements of the Spanish space industry during the last 20 years, and highlighted the role of the companies Hispasat and Hisdesat as “important communication satellite operators”. “We are the fifth-ranked European country in terms of contribution to the ESA and our industry participates to a significant degree in the great majority of its programs”, stated Del Rey.
At the same time, he recalled the contribution of the CDTI for investment in the sector, through the creation of the Strategic Space Plan. “Spanish institutions should continue emphasizing the development of a technologically high value industrial segment such as Space, and companies should continue to do our homework in order to remain competitive in international markets”, pointed out the CEO of Crisa.
For his part, Beteta stressed the innovative role that EADS Astrium Crisa plays, highlighting the projects for the Meteorological Station on the Rover Curiosity, which will travel to Mars in 2011, and the development of the electronics for the ESA’s Bepi-Colombo ship, bound for Mercury. The Minister underlined as well the important role played by the Madrid Aerospace Cluster, founded by Crisa, which now includes 21 partners and three institutions, working in the areas of engineering, engines, systems and services for space, civil use and defense, as well as testing, equipment maintenance and training.