Brandenburg / Havel, Germany, October 29, 2009 – RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that they have successfully run a Precision Farming pilot project for Agro Risk Euro Scan GmbH (ARES). The product of the project is called “Crop Scan” and supports the German farming community in agricultural planning. ARES acts as RapidEye’s service partner for Precision Farming solutions.
From March to September 2009, RapidEye imaged 8,000 hectare multiple times in Germany and provided ARES with up-to-date ground cover maps for different crop types such as wheat, rapeseed, barley, corn and sugar beets each month. The maps helped farmers requesting this product to better plan their agricultural fields and crops for the upcoming months.
Timeliness and accuracy of information is key when providing frequent agricultural monitoring. The RapidEye constellation of five satellites has the unrivaled ability to image individual fields, counties, states or countries on a frequent revisit cycle. Customers can receive field-based information including crop identification, crop area determination, crop condition monitoring, and growth stage determination.
“The results of the project were extremely satisfying, and through this new partnership with ARES we will be able to strengthen our position in the precision agriculture market. We are looking forward to going operational with this service in Germany in conjunction with ARES in 2010. We also expect that we will have additional opportunities to partner with them in the future on other ventures,” commented Michael Prechtel, Head of Sales and Marketing for RapidEye.
ARES will exhibit RapidEye’s range of products and services at this year’s Agritechnica in Hannover, Germany, from November 8-14. Agritechnica is the worldwide meeting point for the agricultural machinery sector. Are you interested in learning more about our products and services? Visit ARES booth in hall 16, number C04. If you would like to discuss our range of products and services for the Agriculture market in more detail, please email sales@rapideye.de. Learn more about ARES by visiting their website at www.cropscan.de, which will be accessible on November 11, 2009. For more information about Agritechnica, please visit their website at www.agritechnica.com.
About RapidEye AG
RapidEye is an ISO-certified geospatial information provider focused on integrating customized and industry specific solutions into the workflow of global customers in agriculture, forestry, energy, infrastructure, government, security and emergency. RapidEye experts and the satellite system – a constellation of five satellites capable of downloading over 4 million km² of high resolution, multi-spectral imagery per day, and a ground segment for processing and archiving data – allow for cost-effective customized services. The unique combination of large area coverage, high spatial resolution and the possibility of daily revisit to an area provide for superior management information solutions. Currently, more than 110 experts from more than 20 countries are employed by RapidEye, with plans to grow the team to 140 by late 2009. RapidEye benefits from a public-private partnership with the Space Agency of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), which is supported by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. RapidEye is also cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). For more information on ERDF please contact efreinfo@mw.brandenburg.de. RapidEye is a “Selected Landmark in the Land of Ideas” and therefore part of the event series “365 Landmarks in the Land of Ideas”. This program is run by the initiative “Germany – Land of Ideas” and Deutsche Bank. Being a “Selected Landmark” RapidEye will stand for Germany being a “Land of ideas” in 2009 and will demonstrate Germany’s spirit of innovation. The initiative is under the patronage of Germany’s federal president Horst Köhler. www.land-of-ideas.org For more information about RapidEye, please visit www.rapideye.de.