Logica will provide information system technology services for the next three years to the European Space Agency (ESA) for use at its ESRIN establishment in Frascati near Rome. The deal, worth 7.5 million euros, will see Logica take on responsibility for operational integration, verification and validation of the ESA’s Earth observation data software.
ESA will benefit from greater uptime and reduced administration costs through outsourcing the management of the highly complex testing and upgrade process. Logica will work as the prime contractor supported by Elsag Datamat and Siemens as sub-contractors. ESA provides Earth observation data to a vast network of scientists and researchers across Europe. The importance of Earth observation data has grown as more and more international and national agencies recognise its many uses. The increased interest in the information has meant that ESA has expanded its capabilities over recent years and now operates over 100 separate systems to acquire, process and disseminate data to users. With such complexity ESA required a supplier that could effectively manage, test and monitor software upgrades and new applications prior to placing into a live environment, thereby ensuring maximum uptime for these mission critical systems.
The Operational Integration, Verification and Validation (OIVV) contract gives Logica responsibility for ensuring that all of the software systems used by ESA and its partner receiving and processing centres are thoroughly tested and validated before they are introduced to the live, operational environment. In a first for ESA the OIVV activity will be delivered as a fully outsourced service, governed by a robust service level agreement. This contract builds on Logica’s commercial information systems integration and testing experience across many industrial sectors, and specifically in large satellite ground segment integration programmes such as the UK Skynet 5 management segment. The OIVV contract commenced on the April 1st, 2010, and will run until the July 31st, 2013, with the option of a further two-year extension.
