Recently announced as the latest member to join SIG, Plextek’s Richard Jacklyn introduces the company, his thoughts on the current state of satcom, and why being a member of SIG helps drive innovation.
Tell us about your company
Plextek Services Limited is an engineering and design services consulting company that specialises in providing solutions to complex engineering challenges in markets including Space, Defence, Security, Transport, MedTech and Consumer. Our team of highly skilled engineers and consultants helps our clients develop innovative and practical solutions to improve their products and processes. For over 35 years, Plextek is best known for developing low size weight and power (SWaP) radio communications, radar and antenna solutions for a full range of customers from start-up to blue chip. Plextek has built a superb team of RF, antenna, analogue, signal processing, software, machine learning, fabrication, mechanical and test engineers. Helped by its location in the Cambridge UK technology and science cluster.
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What industry challenges are having the biggest influence on your work at the moment?
From the perspective of Space and Satellite (S&S), there are several industry challenges, some driven by capacity, others driven by technology capability. For the UK and many other countries active in S&S, there is a dearth of skilled engineer available to develop and execute on the huge space market opportunities in front of us. In a recent UK Space Agency survey in 2023, they reported that 51% of businesses were not able to fill key skills gaps. As an engineering design service consultancy, this attracts businesses to companies like Plextek to provide efficient and skilled resources on an “as-needed” basis.
From a technology challenge perspective in the S&S market Plextek has been active in areas including phased array antenna development, mm-Wave radar, debris tracking, space situational awareness, interference management and cognitive routing. All these technology challenges have a high barrier of entry and require many skilled and experienced engineers.
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What innovative solutions are you working on to address the issue?
As an engineering design services business, much of what we deliver is bespoke to each customer. However, there are often commonalities in the solutions, and this creates the opportunity to create “platforms” as a way of accelerating customers much more quickly to a result. Recently Plextek launched several platforms covering an Internet of Things (IoT) framework, a Ku-band radar for terrestrial and aerospace / drone situational awareness, and a family of mm-Wave radars based on TI automotive grade chipsets. Plextek have successfully used its mm-Wave know-how to launch debris tracking radars into a number of LEO space missions. Using the Plextek raison d’etre, taking low SWaP solutions into space, has been a big focus for Plextek and its work with customers and partners.
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What are your thoughts on spectrum management?
Plextek often gets called upon to perform spectrum and interference management studies and investigations. This can often be between technologies including wi-fi, ZigBee, cellular, satellite and defence-based communications systems. Additionally, with the conflict issues coming from Ukraine and other regions, GPS / GNSS satellite is also in the mix in terms of spectrum study and management.
Given Plextek recent activities in space satellite situational awareness and debris tracking radars, we also have an interest in space-only / satellite-to-satellite spectrum management.
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Do you think creating innovative solutions for cyber security is a priority for the satcoms industry?
Yes it must be, creating innovative solutions for cyber security is of paramount importance for any communications-based industry like industrial IoT or the satcoms industry. As the reliance on satellite communications continues to grow, the risk of cyber-attacks also increases. Plextek believe that robust and advanced security measures are vital to protect critical satellite communication infrastructure and ensure the integrity and confidentiality of data. Plextek comply with the requirements of Cyber Essentials Plus and in our development projects we routinely must consider such inclusions as authentication, encryption, software integrity, and user data security needs.
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Do you have any interesting plans for the next couple of months?
In the coming months, we have several exciting plans in the pipeline. Larger S&S events for Plextek include Space-Comm Expo, Satellite Show, and supporting the many Satellite Application Catapult, UKSA and ESA conferences, and of course we will now support SIG events! We will be showcasing our S&S services and new platforms including the PLX-T60 mm-Wave radar. Additionally, we will be sharing news and updates about our ongoing projects and collaborations through web and LinkedIn channels to keep our clients and partners informed.
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Why do you feel it is important to be a member of SIG?
We believe that being a member of Satcoms Innovation Group (SIG) is important for several reasons. Firstly, it provides us with an opportunity to collaborate and network with like-minded professionals in the S&S industry. Unique to SIG, this is done in a technical and non-political way, encouraging openness and proper discussion. This also allows us to stay updated with the latest trends, developments, and best practices. Secondly, being a member of SIG gives us access to specialised resources, research, and expertise that can further enhance our ability to develop innovative S&S solutions. Lastly, it helps us establish our credibility and reputation within the industry, which is important for attracting new clients, suppliers and partnerships.