At the heart of the French space effort is its space agency, CNES, which has now had to take its turn at being re-organised fundamentally to ensure that France does not fall behind in the race to maintain its front-line technological abilities. Nobody doubts that Europe today finds itself in a transition phase in which it no longer can assume second position, behind the USA, but will have to take its place with others such as Japan, India and China.
Against this, CNES has seen its role change from that of an agency essentially concerned with applying state funding to realise new programmes, to becoming a far more integrated elements of the relationship between government and industry.
In November 1996, the French minister of telecommunications and space, Francois Fillon, made the position clear: "In the 35 years of the existence of CNES, it has never had to produce a strategic plan. Up to now, it has been a secular arm of a space policy based on promoting French industrial strength in space and to maintaining European autonomy in the face of Soviet-American rivalry. But the latest developments have forced all of the space powers to review their objectives and redefine their strategies," he said.
His words came against a background of reduced funding for space programmes. Under the new plan, CNES will at least benefit from a stable budget, and will become a "centre of excellence at the service of the European space effort," responsible for ensuring that the taxpayer gets the most "value-added" return for his money. CNES will, says Fillon, have to "-act in a decisive manner to contribute to our industrial competitiveness".
According to CNES vice-president for strategy, Jean-Yves Le Gall, the agency will henceforth be "open to partnerships" to ensure that industry profits from the technological skills of its 2,500 employees. This should ensure that it takes the maximum advantage of the business in the forthcoming decade, when the market for satellites and launchers is expected to exceed $50 billion, with the associated commercial spin-offs being worth more than $450 billion.
Source: Flight International