Boulogne-Billancourt: cegedim.cloud has been picked to host software solutions for Kinéis’ ground segment—a vital component of the group’s space systems—on a private, secure cloud.
This inventive partnership called for demanding technical specifications in the areas of data and access security, service continuity, and linkages amongst the international network of ground stations and partners’ IoT platforms.
Kinéis has multiple generations of satellites in orbit for 40 years now. Its low data rate connectivity already handles connections with 20,000 devices used in a wide variety of scientific and environmental applications under the Argos and CLS (Collecte Localisation Satellites) banners, as well as in agricultural, humanitarian, maritime, transport, and logistics fields. In early 2023, Kinéis will launch a constellation of 25 nano-satellites to bolster and improve current services.
The system also includes a network of ground stations spread out over 20 sites around the world and a ground segment division responsible for all the knowledge needed to manage the satellites and process collected data.
Part of the ground segment is already up and running for thousands of active devices. These activities will be transferred to cegedim.cloud infrastructures in the spring.
The nest phase, currently in the development stage, will be rolled out alongside the constellation and will ramp up capacity until it can handle 100 times more data than the current system. That volume is required to meet Kinéis’ ambition of democratizing access to space.
cegedim.cloud, a cloud expert in hosting and managing mission-critical platforms, will be responsible for hosting software solutions for the ground segment of Kinéis’ space system and will enable ultra-secure access to IoT platforms and users. cegedim.cloud has met all of the technical and operational requirements Kinéis set for this ambitious project, particularly with respect to security standards, which are fundamental to the space sector.
When it comes to managing data security, cegedim.cloud has proven its maturity and expertise by earning HDS certification for hosting health data, and it complies with the ISO 27001, ISO 27017, and ISO 27018 standards.
The solution devised by cegedim.cloud will include:
- Dedicated, secure platforms monitored 24/7 in accordance with SecNumCloud requirements
- A hybrid public/private cloud infrastructure
- Ultra-secure connection points
- Dual-site production environments
- A disaster recovery plan
cegedim.cloud and Kinéis have formed a trusting relationship and an inventive partnership based on superior security and performance and cloud experts’ involvement for the entire life of the project.
Frédéric Le Guillou, CIO of cegedim.cloud, said, “cegedim.cloud is proud to have been chosen by Kinéis to collaborate on this ambitious project. It was important for us to offer Kinéis a solution that meets its needs from both a technological and a human standpoint. Our cloud offering—which we are constantly enriching—allowed us to do that. This collaboration is built on a shared desire to take on new challenges.”
Ouan’Zan’ Zanifé, Kinéis Chief Operations Officer, said, “As far as I know, no one has ever hosted the entire ground segment of a space system before now, and I’m thrilled that cegedim.cloud made it possible. In addition to controlling the constellation and processing the data collected once the system is operational, we’ve also asked them to host several simulators that will allow us to develop and test our technologies and services, starting now and throughout the life of the constellation. We are confidently adding cegedim.cloud to our list of strategic partners.”
Created in 2018, Kinéis is a satellite operator and global connectivity provider. It inherited 40 years of CNES (French space agency) and CLS (Collecte Localisation Satellites) expertise in the Argos system, which it uses to develop reliable technology that provides easy access to useful satellite data. To make life easier for professionals and individuals and encourage them to use its products and serivces, Kinéis locates and connects objects wherever they are on the planet. To that end, it harnesses all of its technological innovation capabilities to forge links between New Space and IoT.
Kinéis has raised capital of €100 million (CLS 32%, CNES 26%, Bpifrance 20%, Ifremer, Thalès, HEMERIA, CELAD, BNP Paribas Développement, ETHICS Group, MJKD, Consuls Développement, Invest Marel, and others) and generated revenue of €7 million in 2020, a 40% increase compared with 2019.
www.kineis.com
Cegedim’s cegedim.cloud brand offers a unique array of cloud services for hosting critical applications and sensitive data: comprehensive outsourcing, managed platforms, platform as a service (PaaS), on-demand virtual servers, infrastructure as a service (IaaS), and colocation (private space in one of Cegedim’s datacenters). cegedim.cloud is the IT hub of Cegedim Group, France’s fourth-largest software publisher (Truffle100 2020 ranking) and leading healthcare software publisher (Truffle100 and Syntec Numérique rankings).
It has nine datacenters, including four in France. The rest are located in the US, Europe, and Asia. The company has more than 300 private clouds and 150 employees, all of which it uses to maintain the availability of its clients’ critical applications and the confidentiality of its 400,000 daily users’ sensitive data.