Air and Space Developments / IDEAS Project

The Silicon Valley Space Center (SVSC) is a group of
entrepreneurial experts who are actively supporting those
entering the burgeoning NewSpace Industry. SVSC formed
the Air and Space Developments (ASD) team with veteran
NASA scientists, aviation and business experts, universities,
NewSpace companies and associations. Along with a
facility development team, they are creating an Innovative
Design Environment for Air and Space (IDEAS) — a next

generation, cutting-edge co-working facility for commercial
space and aeronautics companies to accelerate the growth
of the industry. The team is intimately familiar with the past
and current challenges and best practices for the industry to
continue to thrive commercially, and sees California as
THE place to incubate new and vital technologies. IDEAS
will create productive high paying jobs and significantly
increase tax dollars throughout the entire region.
Trying to learn about NewSpace?

There is no better time to join Silicon Valley Space
Center and catch the rising tide of emerging
commercial space industry. Learn more about
SVSC membership.

Silicon Valley Space Center hosts or co-sponsors
on aerospace and related technologies,
business and policy issues, and more. Here are
some samples of recent and upcoming events.
Special series include:
TechTalks - a technology and practice
colloboration with AIAA San Francisco
SES - the 4-part Space Entrepreneurship Series
beginning in April 2014.

Get more upcoming events details.

TechTalks, Meetups, and More

Upcoming SVSC and Partner Events:
June 2014
10 - SES 4: Business Canvas, Model Alternatives
18 - Space Startup Showcase with Astronaut Yvonne Cagle
19 - Astronomy from the Moon: Images from the LUT
July 2014
25-27 - Space Startup Weekend
ISS ENTREPRENEURIAL OPPORTUNITIES

October 18 - 20th 2013
The Center for Advancement of Science in Space
(CASIS) and Silicon Valley Space Center (SVSC)
recently held a 3 day workshop designed to find
solutions and opportunities, and lower barriers
for entrepreneurs in the Low Earth Orbit and
NewSpace industries.

Chosen by NASA to manage the International Space
Station U.S. National Laboratory, the mission of
CASIS is to maximize use of this unparalleled
platform to benefit humankind. SVSC a business
accelerator and hub of entrepreneurial activity in
the growing NewSpace industry in Silicon Valley.

In addition to presentations and panels, attendees
participated in challenges and questions about
lowering barriers in the NewSpace industry.

Event Agenda (PDF)

Workshop images courtesy Thread Global

Workshop Report (PDF)
VISION

Spaceflight in the 21st Century requires the infusion of entrepreneurship
and the development of value-added and cost effective commercial services
over a wide range of revenue levels. We created the Silicon Valley Space
Center to assist innovative entrepreneurs in the commercialization of
products or services within the growing NewSpace industry by integrating
the technology expertise, industry acumen, leveraged finance, and
educational leadership of Silicon Valley.

Sean Casey, Managing Director

Upcoming Events

Press

Launch Pad

The Silicon Valley Space Center Accelerator Program “LaunchPad” is advising, mentoring, and co-founding new space start-ups.
We focus on:

TECH DEVELOPMENT

Consultations with new space companies and entrepreneurs on developing their technologies.

BUSINESS STRUCTURES

Setting up company structure tailored for space related ventures.

ANGEL LEVEL FUNDING

Private angel investor meetings.

Vision
Product & Customer Development
Incorporation and Finance
Marketing
Pitching & Fundraising

Together we translate your passion into a business

Develop your product to address market demands
Set realistic goals and expectations
Test business plan assumptions

We will help you set realistic expectations for building a company stemming from our collected industry and incorporation experience. Basically we'll lend you our perspective on whether your business idea and future vision makes sense in the current market, and suggest any changes to the idea or to your expectations - helping you create a successful outlook.

Products Development

How do you build a prototype?
What's the most effective path from idea to offering?
What should comprise a minimum viable product?

We can help you plan and start building your offering as we have extensive hands on knowledge of how you turn your idea into a product, both regarding manufacturing and making effective product development plans. It's crucial to use maximize your efficiency in getting a product to market, and there are a ton of pot-holes on the road that we can help you avoid.

Customer Development

How do you attract the first customers and partners to your vision?
How do you avoid bias in getting useful customer feedback?
How do you effectively use feedback to better your product?

Don't spend 3 months developing a product nobody wants - build your product around your customer. Customer Development is a key because it opens the door to rapid product improvement, without wasting time and effort developing something nobody will buy. The first step is exploration, which is focused on determining whether there is a problem worth solving in the first place. The only way to answer that question is to ask or analyse your prospective customers. But how and when do you conduct these interviews? How do you get actionable insights out of them? People lack the capacity to accurately predict their own behavior in hypothetical situations.

Legal

How to incorporate in investor friendly ways
How do you avoid common legal mistakes?
What about NDAs?

Especially if starting your first business, incorporation can be a major headache, luckily we know how to do it right in terms of not wasting time or money on incorporation whilst insuring that your new business is friendly to investors in the space industry. Revenues, Costs and Profits What does it cost to build your product or service? How much will you charge? Can you expect a profit? Do you have a financial model planned out to pay investors?

Cofounders & Hiring

What talent do you need in the beginning to be successful? How do you recruit the first team members with extremely limited resources? How do you set expectations, measure results and remove or fire under-performing resources? Do you need a co-founder?

What are tips and tricks to present your business? How do you craft a successful media release? What are effective tactics to get social media, the blogosphere and traditional media to take notice? What are common media mistakes for new companies? How do you portray yourself and your business to the world? How do you involve your customers and partners in your success?

30 seconds is all it takes

Learn how to do a 30 second, Two Minute and Five Minute Pitch. How NOT to do a slide deck. When is it realistic to raise capital for a brand new company? Mentor Review A selected mentor will review your business, and provide blunt feed back on improvements. How should you calculate the amount of money to raise? How should you define the use use of proceeds? What materials are required to fund raise? What do investors expect from the company? What are typical investment structures and deal terms for seed-stage financing? Identify a list of potential investors, and prepare to meet them.

About

Silicon Valley Space Center provides business acceleration, strategic direction and angel level funding for startup companies within the growing NewSpace industry in Silicon Valley. We assist start-up and early-stage companies with the commercialization of their innovative products or services. We regularly host events and workshops to bring together the vast array of entrepreneurs, scientists, engineers, and investors who share a passion for shaping the future of space exploration. Join SVSC and become part of this group on the forefront of NewSpace in Silicon Valley.

Dr. Sean Casey Founder and Managing Director

Dr. Sean Casey is Co-Founder and Managing Director of the Silicon Valley Space Center, a business accelerator for NewSpace entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. He is a member of the Suborbital Applications Researchers Group of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation and has over two decades of experience as an airborne astronomer. Dr. Casey’s work has been recognized as an example of NASA’s goal for “more efficient and cost effective methodologies to instrument design and construction…”. read more

Dr. Periklis Papadopoulos Founder

Professor Papadopoulos is the Aerospace Program Coordinator and the Director/Founder of the Center of Excellence for Space Transportation and Exploration at San Jose State University (SJSU). At SJSU, he directs the microsatellite and CubeSat program. He is the author or co-author of 58 research publications in aerothermodynamics and computational fluid dynamics and has performed de-orbit trajectory, CFD and systems level analysis for the Mars Science Laboratory.

Lee Colin Executive VP/Business Development

Lee enjoys an extensive business development background. He is intimately involved in the leadership of the popular The Silicon Valley Space Center (start-up incubator) and the Final Frontier LLC which provides marketing for New Space clients. Along with Dr. Casey he is charged with launching the IDEAS Project (Innovative Design Environment for Air and Space) to provide the ideal home for space and aeronautics companies in California in three locations. read more

William Willoughby Chief Operations Officer

William Willoughby has more than 44 years of commercial, military and general aviation maintenance experience including station operations, airframe and engine heavy depot maintenance and overhaul, flight line maintenance and component back shops. Positions included chief operations officer, director of maintenance, aircraft maintenance manager, station manager, senior engineering supervisor, consultant, team leader, aviation maintenance instructor and supervisor.read more

Dr. Eric Morano Principal Advisor

Dr. Eric Morano is a Principal Advisor to the Silicon Valley Space Center where he provides management advice about the current and future direction of the center including its incubator efforts. He has over 20 years of experience and held multiple positions in science, aerospace engineering and management, and business development. At Caltech he was a Senior Research Fellow and a co-founder of the Virtual shock physics Test Facility for the DoE ASCI program. read more

Membership

Join the Silicon Valley Space Center (SVSC) and become an integral part of a unique and proactive coworking group at the forefront of the growing NewSpace industry in the Silicon Valley. SVSC members are innovative forward-leaning, advanced thinking engineers, scientists, hackers, technologists, business developers, spacers, and others driven to encourage the growth of NewSpace startups. You do not need a membership to attend an SVSC meetup, or to pitch a business or technology to us. However, if you find yourself attending meetings frequently and partaking in the communal snacks, please become a member. Membership dues go toward keeping our brains fueled and events happening. Members now receive copies of The Lurio Report, updates from the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, and other sources as SVSC is able to provide them. SVSC offers three levels of regular membership: Individual, Student, and Corporate. In addition, there are Silver and Gold levels of sponsorship. These are briefly summarized below, and described in further detail in the SVSC Membership Levels table (PDF).

Types of Membership

All members receive:

discounted registration to SVSC-sponsored workshops, hackathons, and other events.
updates from the Commercial Spaceflight Federation
monthly news from SVSC on trends, technology, and resources.

Individual, $250/year Individual membership is for those that would like to lend their skills to the SVSC, accelerate commercial space startups, and take part in the meetings and events. In addition to CSF and SVSC updates, individual members receive copies of The Lurio Report ($150 value), and a one-year subscription to NewSpace Global market data service on the commercial space sector ($395 value). Corporate, $750/year Like Individual members, corporate members have access to CSF and SVSC updates, and The Lurio report. Corporate members can designate two persons to access the NewSpace Global service. In addition, a limited number of free tickets are available for VLAB, the Bay area chapter of the MIT Enterprise Forum. Corporate members also can have their business plan and related materials reviewed by SVSC mentors. Student, $50/year In addition to CSF and SVSC updates, Student members gain special student access to the NewSpace Global market data service. To qualify, students must be enrolled full-time, and have a valid student e-mail address. Silver Sponsor, $2500/year Intended for more established ventures, Silver Sponsors expand on the Corporate member benefits, including additional seats into the NewSpace Global data service. They are featured on the SVSC website, and have an annual opportunity to showcase their work at SVSC and affiliated events. See the SVSC Membership Levels table (PDF) for details. Gold Sponsor, $5000/year Like Silver Sponsors, this is intended for more established ventures, but has certain expanded benefits. They are featured on the SVSC website, and have an annual opportunity to showcase their work at SVSC and affiliated events. See the SVSC Membership Levels table (PDF) for details.

Get in Touch

Contact info

3295 Scott Blvd, Santa Clara, CA 95054

505-690-1295

newspace@siliconvalleyspacecenter.org

Elsewhere

We'll post our latest news updates on Facebook, you can also see our linkedin profile below.

The first Space Hacker Workshop for Suborbital Experiments, presented by Citizens in Space and the Silicon Valley Space Center, was a stunning success. Citizensinspace.org