2023 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

TUESDAY - NOVEMBER 28, 2023

How an innovation-driven ecosystem meets the challenges of civil and military aviation?

Institutional Remarks

Andrea Malaguti, Editor, LA STAMPA

Moderator

Alberto Cirio, President,  

Regione Piemonte

Dario Gallina, President, 

Turin Chamber of Commerce

Stephane Castet, CEO,

 abe BCI Aerospace 

Giovanna Pentenero, 

Counselor for Economic Activities, City of Turin

Welcome addresses

Luisa Riccardi, Deputy Secretary General of Defence, 

Ministry of Defence

Fabrizio Ricca, Regional Minister for Internationalization,

Regione Piemonte

Dario Peirone, President, 

Piemonte Agency for Internationalization Commerce

Marco Gay, President, 

Piedmont Union of Industrialists

Fulvia Quagliotti, President, Piedmont Aerospace Cluster

Teodoro Valente, President, 

Italian Space Agency

Matteo Zoppas, President, Italian Trade Agency

Opening speech (online)

Giancarlo Giorgetti, 

Minister of Economy and Finance

Resilient Supply Chain – The Vision
  • Shift in supply chain strategies
  • How to adapt to the new normal / Adapting business models
  • Managing through disruption
  • Capabilities in contingency planning / Predict demand reliability

Moderator

Emilio Cozzi, Journalist

 

Giacinto Carullo, Chief Procurement and Supply Chain Officer, 

Leonardo

Massimo Comparini, CEO, 

Thales Alenia Space

Vincenzo Giorgio, CEO,

 Altec

Laura Holmes, General Manager, Collins Aerospace Italy

Angela Natale

Angela Natale, 

Managing Director,

Boeing Southern Europe

Riccardo Procacci, CEO, 

Avio Aero

The need for speed & collaboration: Delivering disruptive technologies for climate neutrality
Axel Krein

Axel Krein, Executive Director,

Clean Aviation JU

Panel discussion “Alternative propulsion to reduce environmental footprint.”
  • Cooperation Leonardo & Punch Torino
  • Consortium coordinated by Avio Aero with Safran and Airbus
  • New Engine design for hydrogen in zero carbon aviation
  • Alternative propulsion

Moderator

Emilio Cozzi, Journalist

 

Pierpaolo Antonioli, CTO, CEO and Board Chairman,

Punch Group

Luca Bedon, Advanced Technologies Executive, R&T Leader,

Avio Aero

Aurelio Boscarino, SVP Head of Strategy & Innovation, Aircraft Division, 

Leonardo

Photo of Miguel Castillo

Miguel Angel Castillo, VP Technology Development, 

Aernnova

Ester Porras, Director of Engineering & Technology, 

Aciturri

Closing remarks

Andrea Tronzano, Regional Minister for Economic Activities and SMEs, Regione Piemonte

WEDNESDAY - NOVEMBER 29, 2023

The Digital Transformation Imperative for the Aerospace & Defense

The aerospace and defense industries have long operated on the cutting edge to develop and deliver advanced capabilities across all warfighting domains. But today, adversaries are eroding many of the technological advantages long held by multiple countries. How? The simple answer is speed — they design, test, and deliver new capabilities faster. Dramatic changes will be required to deliver new and vital capabilities quickly enough to stay ahead of the threat, and the key to it all is digital engineering. In this presentation we’ll discuss:

  • Challenges in defense systems acquisition that impact cost, schedule, and performance
  • Imperatives for digital transformation in the defense industry
  • Latest approaches to overcoming these challenges with digital engineering
Harnessing Models by Enabling Seamless Collaboration Up to the Mission Definition

The presentation will explore the crucial role of models in facilitating digital engineering processes. With some examples we will delve into the concept of digital continuity and its ability to foster collaboration among stakeholders, highlighting the significance of the digital thread in enabling various functionalities, such as: functional and performance assessment, analysis and simulation of extreme conditions and diverse strategies, as well as iterative definition and refinement of architectures and behaviors. During the talk we will emphasize how models support requirement-driven development by establishing contracts among systems, managing conflicts, enabling traceability across development cycles, and compliance with industry standards (DO-254/178C/326, ECSS, ARP4754A). Finally, the importance of a collaborative environment in both development and operational phases will be underscored. Attendees will gain insights into the transformative power of models in achieving digital engineering objectives.

Roberto Gemma, Global Product 

Sales Manager, 

Ansys


Jordi Villar Venini, Application Engineer, 

MathWorks 

Luca Terlevich, Senior Account Manager, 

MathWorks 

Presentation of Veneto aerospace cluster AIR and Space Meetings Veneto 2024 edition

AIR – Aerospace Innovation and Research is the aerospace cluster of Veneto region, one of the main regions in Italy in the aerospace supply chain, which groups over 60 companies active in the space and aerospace market, four universities of the Region and various excellences of the territory.
Veneto Region and AIR are organizing in collaboration with ABE the second edition of the international event Space Meeting Veneto 2024 that will bring together in Venice (IT), from 20 to 22 May 2024, the main global operators in the space economy and emerging technological sectors, to discuss the latest developments in the world of satellite applications, innovative technologies , supply chain and investments.

Federico Zoppas, President,

  Veneto Aerospace Cluster AIR

Strategic cooperation on “Net-Zero Aviation” between Piedmont Region and the European Partnership for Clean Aviation
  • Presentation of financing opportunities in the short (2024) and medium-long (2025-2027) term for the aeronautical supply chain as part of the S3 regional programming, with reference to alignment with the Clean Aviation program and the Joint Roadmap.
  • Introduction on Clean Aviation opportunities, in particular for the Piedmontese aerospace supply chain and involvement of large Piedmontese companies in the JU and added value of the Piedmont-JU cooperation
  • Speeches

Giuliana Fenu, Director for Regional System
Competitiveness,

Regione Piemonte

Daniele Violato, Head of Synergies & Strategic
Development, Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking

Marco Protti, VP Advanced Research, Leonardo

Enrico Casale, NTI – New Technologies Introduction Portfolio Manager,

Avio Aero

Christian Maria Firrone, Assistant Professor, Polytecnic of Turin

Fulvia Quagliotti, President, Piedmont Aerospace Cluster

Development and Opportunities of the Korean Aerospace Industry -“Jeju Island, optimal investment location for the civil aerospace “
  • Korean Aerospace Industry Trends
  • Perigee’s Space Launch Vehicle development and Jeju Island’s Aerospace Environment
  • Cooperation Possibilities between Korean and Italian Aerospace Industry

Myeongshin Lee, Director, 

Korea Aerospace Research Institute

Sooyeaon Shim, Vicepresident, 

Perigee Aerospace Inc.

Youn Park, Executive VP,  

Korea Aerospace Industries, LTD

Defense plenary introduction

Giuseppe Bottero, Journalist, 

La Stampa

Luisa Riccardi, Deputy Secretary General of Defence, 

Ministry of Defence

Lt General Giuseppe LUPOLI, Director of the Directorate for Air Armaments and Airworthiness, ARMAERO

  • Italy’s participation in the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP)
  • How this project will generate a positive return for Italy’s national industrial ecosystem, drawing on SMEs, start(ups, universities and the world of research
  • The sixth-generation combat air platforms operating in multi-domain scenarios

Emerging and disruptive technologies changing the way the Alliance operates in times of peace,

Massimo Castorina, Business Development & Marketing Executive, 

Avio Aero

Cristiano Montrucchio, Senior Vice President Engineering – Head of Design Organization, Leonardo Aircraft Division

Barbara McQuiston, Chair of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) Board of Directors (BoD), Department of Defense – United State of America, US department of Defense, Under Secretariat of Defense for Research and Engineering

  • How Eurodrone programme will generate a further 7,000 high-tech jobs within the European Union and will secure technological knowhow development and sustainment
  • Strategic performance capabilities
  • How will drones impact the future of military warfare?
  • Multinational armament project

Stefano Renna, Eurodrone System Leader, Chief Engineer, Avio Aero 

Simone Duranti, Head of the Eurodrone Line of Business, Leonardo

The Future of the End-to-End Urban Air Transportation

Stephen Bridgewater, Deputy Editor,

AEROSPACE Magazine, Royal Aeronautical Society

Giuseppe Acierno, President and Managing Director, 

DTA – Aerospace Technological Cluster

Giuseppe Carusi, Chairman, 

eVertiSky

Fulvia Quagliotti, President,

Piedmont Aerospace Cluster

Dan Sloat, CEO, Volatus and Founder, 

Advanced Air Mobility Institute

Tomislav Lang, Founder, 

flyVbird

Federico Ramazotti, Sales & Marketing Director, 

FEV Italia

Takeoff Accelerator: Program and Startups

During the presentation, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the aerospace startup accelerator model and the startups that have been accelerated and invested in by the dedicated investment vehicle.

Eugenia Forte Director, Plug and Play,

Takeoff Accelerator

Technology Development with Boeing

The presentation will introduce the Boeing team that are attending the conference and then discuss the broad technology aims that Boeing is focused upon. The presentation will then cover the Advanced Technology theme in more detail touching upon flight deck requirements, autonomous capabilities, cabin architectures and the ecoD demonstrator programme

Tim Wheeler, Product Development Collaboration Leader, UK & Europe,

 The Boeing Company

Artificial Intelligence for a more sustainable Aviation – Panel
  • Better Fuel Efficiency (AI-powered systems assisting in the reduction of fuel consumption)
  • Connected Aircraft/Connected Defense (situational awareness and mission efficiency for government and military operators by reducing fuel costs from better optimized flight route, better fleet utilization and increasing asset availability as a result of predictive maintenance)
  • Reducing Air Traffic Congestion with Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast

Moderator

Matteo Sonza Reorda,

Vice Rector for Research,

Politecnico di Torino

Cristina Leone, Senior Vice President – Projects, Grants and Agencies, Leonardo 

President, CTNA

Piera Carrà, 

Chief Information Officer, 

Avio Aero

Elisa Capello, Full Professor of Flight Mechanics,

Politecnico di Torino

Eleonora Marino, Head of Innovation & Venture Lab,

CIM 4.0

What’s going on in Piemonte? Opportunities and tools
Giulia Marcon, Manager of International Promotion Department,   Regione Piemonte

Stefano Nigro, General Manager, Ceipiemonte

Fulvia Quagliotti,  President, Piedmont Aerospace Cluster  

Eleonora Marino, Head of Innovation & Venture Lab, CIM 4.0

Leo Italiano, Program Manager, ESA Bic Turin

Airbus Procurement Detail Parts Strategy

AIRBUS and its whole supply chain have been faced with significant challenges over the past few years, from major restructuring to a worldwide pandemic whilst still maintaining an exceptional backlog to be delivered across the next 10 years.The objective is to deliver all these aircrafts; On time, On cost and On quality, this represents an industrial, commercial and technical challenge for the global supply chain and required Airbus to foster its detail part business around key strategic suppliers.Beyond the industrial excellence which is expected from all our suppliers, some differentiating factors are also critical when selecting Airbus Atlantic key suppliers : globalization, innovation capacity, value creation, sustainable operational performance and continuous improvement.The presentation aims at presenting the AIRBUS Atlantic Detail Parts development, reviewing its sourcing strategy and its implementation.

Annabelle Lopez, Head of Metallic Parts Procurement, 

Airbus Atlantic

Türkiye: a bright star in the global aerospace and defense arena

Over the past decade, Turkish defense and aviation industry has undergone a remarkable transformation, with turnover nearly tripling (USD 12.2 billion in 2022).  Türkiye, with outstanding local capabilities and a strategic location, has capitalized on new opportunities in the European Union, United States, Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and South America.  Türkiye is now a hub for international companies, and Turkish companies have nurtured strong capabilities, incorporating leading-edge technologies within a robust ecosystem. Currently, more than 2,000 companies operate in the sector, with four Turkish manufacturers ranking among the top 100 defense contractors globally.  The conference will present the opportunities offered by the Country to the international stakeholders, and will host distinguished testimonials from two prominent Turkish companies

Alfredo Nocera, Country Advisor Italy, 

Investment Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye

Gino Costa,     Country Advisor Italy

Investment Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye

Umut Tufan, 

Advanced Lead Engineer, 

R&D Sourcing,

TEI

Ahmet Çelik Programs Director

Alp Aviation

Umbria Aerospace Cluster: Strategic Steering Position Paper

Umbria Aerospace Cluster has recently published a strategic position paper that aims at providing its private and public stakeholders with strtegic insight into the compétences and capabilities of associated companies, aerospace market trends and opportunities, Esg in aerospace, as well as existing R&D funding opportunities. The position paper also consequently provides essential information to national and local government on which areas to focus future public policy on aerospace. 

Authors include Umbria Digital Innovation Hub, the Polytechnical University of Turin, the University of Perugia and Kpmg.

Michele Fioroni,

Minister for Economic Development of the Region of Umbria

Michela Sciurpa, Administrator of Sviluppumbria

Luca Mastrogiacomo, 

Full Professor in Tecnhology and Machining Systems, Polytechnical University of Turin

Daniele Tonti, President,

Umbria Aerospace Cluster

Cillian Roberto Fani O’Broin, 

Secretary General, 

Umbria Aerospace Cluster 

 

ANSER Emilia-Romagna, a new leader in the Aerospace Supply Chain

ANSER is a consortium of 23 Italian leading companies with complementary skills and more than 25 years of experience in the aeronautics and space sectors. We can provide integrated and verticalized solutions, from the procurement, design and manufacturing of the single assembly to the entire production cycles of rotary and fixed wing vehicles. ANSER capabilities include, but are not limited to, procurement and manufacturing of structural components (e.g., sheet metal and composite materials), development and integration of electromechanical parts (e.g., wiring, PCB), cutting edge machining technologies, welding, tooling production, coating, additive manufacturing, NDT and imaging-based testing. ANSER is based in Emilia-Romagna (Italy), one of the most advanced Italian regions for manufacturing and innovation. ANSER companies are NADCAP certified for several special processes (e.g., fusion welding, coating, testing), and are qualified supplier of international top-notch private EOMs and public institutions

Alberto Mariani, Coordinating President of Management Committee, 

ANSER (AeroNautics and Space in Emilia-Romagna) and Business Development Director, Curti

Piergiorgio Di Marco

Sales Manager, ANSER

THURSDAY - NOVEMBER 30, 2023

Accessing Indian market for Aerospace, Defence and Space – Roadmap and case studies from Telangana

Telangana is the most vibrant aerospace, Defence and Space ecosystem in India. It hosts a large number of Public sector Defence labs and production units and is also the preferred manufacturing hub in India for global Aerospace OEMs such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Airbus, Safran, GE Aviation etc. The State has more than 1000 SMEs  in the precision engineering industry, many of which are integrated into the global  Aerospace manufacturing supply chain.. The presentation shall cover the policies, ecosystem, and a roadmap for tapping the large market opportunities emerging in the Aviation, Defence and Space industry in India. 

Praveen PA, Director of Aerospace & Defense Sector,

Government of Telangana, India

The Czech Aerospace Industry: Opportunities for your business and cooperation

If you want to learn more about the Czech market and the aerospace and defense sector in the Czech Republic, take part in our workshop and we will present you the latest and most important information. We will give you advice that no one else can give you regarding the Czech business environment, while the Czech companies will share their experiences with you.

Marek Atanasčev, Director of the CzechTrade and CzechInvest office in Italy,

Foreign Office of Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic

The aerospace sector of Campania: sustainability, advanced urban air mobility and space

Sergio Mazzarella, Head of  

“SURAP”  office of the “General Direction for Economic Development and Productive Activities”

Gennaro Russo, Space and High-Speed Systems Sr. Mgr

CAMPANIA AEROSPACE DISTRICT – DAC

Recent CT applications for next generation Aerospace parts

Agiometrix is introduced as a CT service company operating in the Automotive and Aerospace Industries since 2013, offering a portfolio of four distinct CT systems. The company has gained valuable experience in addressing unique inspection challenges while qualifying metal additive manufacturing parts and intricate carbon fiber structures. Two case studies are presented, the first focusing on an Inconel LPBF prototype. The case study discusses the inspection approach to meet requirements, the comparison of CT datasets, and the constraints and solutions encountered. The second case study involves an oversize carbon fiber frame, discussing a similar inspection approach, CT dataset comparisons, and the corresponding constraints and solutions. The presentation concludes with an overview of Agiometrix’s forthcoming technology developments in the coming years.

Marco Giogoli, Key Account Manager, 

Agiometrix

Aero Structure Design and Optimization with CAE Parametric Technology

Conventional Aero Structure design and development starts from creating a styling in a studio and then create a STL data. In order to ensure the design meets the target performance like lift & Dag, crashworthiness, NVH, durability, vehicle dynamics, etc., engineers will start selecting the Frames, bulkheads, fuselage, spars, stringers, etc., from the existing database repository and starts creating initial CAD designs.  This is very time consuming and often requires repeatedly updating the design as and when airfoil design changes or the components thus created doesn’t meet the performance target. We will focus on demonstrating some relevant technology enablers to optimize an aircraft design.

Andrea Boscolo, Application Engineer,

Exemplar

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Vidya Shankar, DEP USA Inc. – Vice President and Global Business Development, Exemplar

KEY TOPICS

Sustainability icon

Sustainability &
Green Aviation

defense cybersecurity icon

Defense &
CyberSecurity

Space ecosystem icon

Space
Ecosystem & Lunar Economy

Urban mobility icon

Advanced &
Urban Air Mobility

Sustainability icon

Industry 5.0
AI/Data

Luigi Scatteia

Global Space Practice Leader

Luigi is a Partner in PwC Advisory France. Within PwC he leads the Space Practice worldwide, and core space strategy consulting team based in Paris and Toulouse, focused on serving institutional and commercial stakeholders in the space sector, as well as non-space companies with specific commercial interest in space products and applications. He has 22 years of experience in the space sector and he has extensively supported the Space Industry, the investment community, Space Agencies, intergovernmental organizations, and governments in Europe and Worldwide. He is a regular keynote and panel speaker at space-related events worldwide.  

Ralf Zimmermann

HO Moon Programs and Orion-ESM

Ralf Zimmermann is the assigned head of moon programs and project manager of the Orion European Service (ESM) module at Airbus. The ESM represents half of the spacecraft used by NASA and international partners to return humans to the moon within the Artemis program. Prior to this, Ralf Zimmermann was chief programs officer and managing director of TESAT Spacecom, delivering electronic equipment for satellites (telecom, earth observation and science and constellations). Before joining TESAT he headed a multinational department for Active Radar and Microwave instruments in Airbus Space Systems in the earth observation perimeter. Earlier career stations encompass: Head of German national and Export Satellites, Program Manager for the Automated Transfer Vehicle serving the International Space Station (ISS) and different positions within the Columbus program development for the European Module of the ISS.

Walter Cugno

Vice President Exploration and Science Domain

After finishing his graduate studies in the field of aerospace engineering and technology, Walter Cugno joined the company in 1975 as a member of the Spacelab programme, the first European manned space system. He then held positions as Assembly, Test and Integration manager of the Hipparcos satellite, and in project management roles on BeppoSax and on the International Space Station (ISS) programme, developing, amongst other things, the Node2 Harmony, Node 3 Tranquility and Cupola elements, as well as the PMM (Permanent Multipurpose Module) Programme and the Cygnus Pressurized Cargo Module. After time spent as the Director of the ExoMars Programme, he was then appointed  as VP, Exploration and Science and head of Thales Alenia Space’s activities in Turin. Walter Cugno is a world-renowned expert in the field of human and robotic space exploration, as well as in the prospective studies of the exploitation of space resources in the “new space” economy.

Raphael Roettgen

Founder & Partner

Raphael Roettgen is the founder of E2MC Ventures, a space-focused early-stage venture capital firm. He is also the co-founder of Prometheus Life Technologies, a space biotech startup that was the first startup to win the Orbital Reef innovation challenge.

He lectures on space entrepreneurship and finance at several universities including the International Space University (ISU) and the Swiss Institute of Technology at Lausanne (EPFL), hosts the popular Space Business Podcast, and is the author of “To Infinity”, an introductory book on the space economy.

Previously, Mr. Roettgen held senior roles at global investment banks and hedge funds and was also a fintech entrepreneur in Brazil.

He holds degrees in finance from Wharton, machine learning from PUC-Rio and space studies from the International Space University, where he also serves as a governing member.

Sam Martin

Senior Partner

Since 2010, Sam has been a partner at Fleur De Lis Partners in Tampa, Florida, accumulating more than a decade of private transaction experience. In 2019, he led application development at an AI startup. After departing in 2020, he deepened his AI research, earned a certificate in CS from NYU, and in 2022, co-authored an ML algorithm for equities analysis. That same year, he invested in Spaced Ventures. He joined their team in March 2023 as Senior Partner and has since helped close 4 transactions representing 14.5mn $USD in AUM. Sam holds a bachelor’s in philosophy and a minor in music from George Washington University.

Adnan Al-Rais

Director of Remote Sensing Department

In his capacity as Assistant Director General – Space Operations and Exploration Sector in
the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), Adnan and his team are responsible
for all downstream activities of MBRSC space missions. This includes the Ground
Networks Operations and Maintenance, Missions Operations, Data Processing,
Applications and Value-added Products Development, Interfacing with the end users;
locally and internationally, as well as commercializing MBRSC products and services.
In addition, Adnan is managing the UAE Astronaut Program at MBRSC, managing missions,
and preparing astronauts corps to support current and future Human Spaceflight
missions. Moreover, he is overseeing the Space Science and Space Robotics Lab at MBRSC.
Adnan has published and presented a number of papers in the areas of remote sensing
and satellite image applications. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering
from Khalifa University, Sharjah, UAE

Timothy Cichan

 Chief Architect, Commercial Civil Space

Timothy Cichan (Chee-haan) is the Space Exploration Architect at Lockheed Martin, where he leads a multi-disciplinary team of engineers who figure out how to help astronauts and robots visit the Moon, asteroids, and Mars. He previously was the Orion System Architect. Timothy joined Lockheed Martin in 2002, and has worked for both human spaceflight and commercial communication satellite teams, in optimal trajectory design, mission analysis, subsystem development, and systems engineering. He has a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from Penn State.

Dana Baki

Chief Commercial Officer

Dana Baki is the Chief Commercial Officer of The Exploration Company, one of the fastest growing space companies globally, building reusable space capsules and lunar landers. This Nyx capsule will be the first to use green propellant globally, while flying at a fraction of the cost of global competition.

Prior to joining The Exploration Company, Dana was the co-founder & COO of MUNCH:ON, a food technology platform based out of the Middle East, that was acquired by Careem (Uber’s subsidiary in the region). Before starting MUNCH:ON, Dana was a Partner of Business Development at AlJal Capital—a financing and venture capital firm in the United Arab Emirates. Previous to that, Ms. Baki worked for Procter & Gamble in the United States for 7+ years, benefiting from a wide range of assignments within the company and gaining expertise in Corporate Strategy, Marketing and Consumer Insights.

She holds an MBA from Georgetown University and B.A. in Economics and English Literature from The University of Michigan.

Theodora Ogden

Analyst – Defence & Security

Theodora Ogden is an Analyst in the Defence and Security team at RAND Europe, where she focuses on emerging technologies, strategy and space as an operational domain. Her work has helped inform UK MOD and the UK Space Agency, including towards development of the British National Space Strategy and security strategy. She currently manages a large-scale evaluation of the UKSA’s Earth Observation programme. In 2022 Theodora spent six months on secondment at Arizona State University as the inaugural Interplanetary Initiative Fellow, leading research on equitable access to space and emerging spacefaring countries. She regularly publishes and speaks on the future of space and key geopolitical, legal and economic challenges. Theodora also provides advice and research input for various international working groups and policy initiatives. With an academic background in security and international law, Theodora previously worked at NATO HQ SACT and the Fundamental Rights Agency of the EU, as well as at several think tanks and non-profit organisations.

Joshua Western

CEO and Co-founder

Josh co-founded Space Forge in 2018. From kick-starting their mission to change the face of the space industry – making space work for humanity – Josh, and co-founder Andrew Bacon, have taken the industry leading startup from a garage in Bristol to raising the largest ever seed round in Europe by a Space Tech company. 

Space Forge is developing the world’s first fully reusable platform, to unlock the benefits of space for manufacturing and experimentation at scale. By producing next generation materials off planet and returning to Earth, a stepchange in humanity’s progress is possible – with the power to progress a clean industrial revolution.

 

Prior to co-founding Space Forge, Josh gained a vast knowledge of the UK Space Industry: working for Thales Alenia Space across marketing and sales, as well as was being seconded to the UK Space Agency, where he worked on everything from Critical National Infrastructure to technology harmonisation with European Space Agency member states.

Manny Shah

Managing Director

Manny is the Managing Director for UK & Europe at Orbit Fab, supporting the development of an in-space propellant and materials supply chain. Manny is focused on technology development, commercialisation, and international growth for this leading space start-up. Manny previously helped develop BryceTech’s international consulting presence into a revenue generating and profitable business, managed the analysis of a multi-billion-dollar portfolio of assets at Inmarsat, and executed on cross-functional initiatives at top-tier investment banks. Manny holds a master’s degree in space studies from the International Space University and a bachelor’s in computer science from the University of Kent.

Manny sits on multiple advisory boards and committees, including UKSA’s Space Technology Advisory Committee, the UK’s Spaceflight Safety and Regulatory Council, and the International Astronautical Federation’s Industry Relations Committee. He is a recipient of the 2023 IAF Young Space Leader, the 2019 and 2020 SSPI 20 under 35 award, SGAC’s Space Generation Leadership award, and the William S. Ball Award for Entrepreneurship.

Didier Schmitt

Head of the Strategy
& Coordination Group, Directorate of Human and Robotic Exploration

Didier Schmitt is head of the strategy and coordination group for human and robotic exploration at the European Space Agency. From 2009 to 2018 he was stationed in Brussels, successively in the European Commission Space Policy Unit, as adviser to the President of the EC on technology foresight, and at the EU diplomatic service dealing with space and security. Previously he was head of life sciences for human spaceflight at ESA-ESTEC. As an academic he was Associate Professor at the Toulouse medical school and at the International Space University in Strasbourg. His educational background is PhD in biosciences as well as a certified medical doctor.