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Speedcast Secures Multi-Year Contract to Provide Mission-Critical Remote Communication Services to Australian Antarctic Research Stations

 

Speedcast has been awarded a multi-year, multimillion-dollar contract with an Australian government department conducting world-class scientific and environmental research in Antarctica. Speedcast will provide the Australian Antarctic program with mission-critical and life-saving communications to the outside world.

"Being chosen to provide communications in Antarctica is both an honor and a testament to Speedcast’s commitment to supporting the Australian government and enabling leading-edge research," said Pierre-Jean Beylier, CEO, Speedcast. "Our team of highly qualified engineers is proud to provide 24/7 support and solutions to enable individuals in these remote and harsh locations to communicate with the outside world for day-to-day communication and in the event they need emergency assistance. This win is an example of the increase in government spending in satellite communications and Speedcast’s ability to grow market share as the government segment continues to expand."

Speedcast will provide VSAT bandwidth, equipment and installation including training, antenna upgrades and repositioning, and network optimization. Speedcast will also provide additional support to other scientific users such as Geoscience Australia at the three Australian Antarctic research stations, Mawson, Casey and Davis, as well as the base on Macquarie Island. With the updates Speedcast is making to the satellite links, the research program will have four times more throughput than it had with their previous provider once installations are completed in January 2018.

While there may be up to 120 people on each research station in the summer, during the harsh winters of Antarctica when travel to the icy continent is not possible, the population of each research station is much smaller and satellite communication is their only link to the outside world. The reliability of these links is essential for the well-being of wintering expeditioners and enables telemedicine support if required.




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