Datatrak IT Services to act as reseller for satellite imager

Datatrak IT Services Ltd (DITSL) has become a value added reseller and agent for one of Europe's leading satellite providers, Spot Image France. The agreement was signed between Joe Fenech Conti, chief executive officer of DITSL, and Jean-Marc Nasr, president and chief executive officer of Spot Image.

Under the agreement, DITSL will act as a reseller in Malta and Libya for satellite imagery derived from the Spot range of satellites. This strategy is intended to place DITSL in a key position to market and enhance its satellite mapping services.

Furthermore, the use of high resolution and global imagery from Spot's latest satellite, Spot 5, will provide added-value basemaps to DITSL's suite of Geographical Information Systems (GIS).

DITSL's Geomatics department specialises in mapping, land surveying and GIS services, and has an extensive track record for government departments, parastatal organisations and private companies, both in Malta and internationally. Satellite images have numerous applications and are crucial components of the GIS developed by DITSL.

Recently, DITSL used satellite imagery to produce a series of high scale maps for municipal authorities in North Africa, and complemented its portfolio of international mapping projects in the Middle East and North African region.

Spot Image is the world's leading supplier of geographic information derived from Earth observation satellites on a worldwide basis. Set up in 1982, the company's main missions are the worldwide promotion, marketing and distribution of imagery from Spot's five satellites.

From its headquarters in Toulouse, France, Spot Image has developed an international network of receiving stations and established a worldwide commercial network for sales and distribution. The Spot programme was developed by the French Space Agency CNES, in co-operation with Belgium and Sweden.

DITSL currently uses various types of satellite imagery to suit its clients' requirements. This affiliation with Spot Image France will enable DITSL to use Spot products to support clients from several sectors, such as urban planning, utilities, agriculture, land cover mapping, 3D terrain modelling, oil and gas exploration and cartography.

DITSL also aims to use Spot imagery to enhance its in-house production of digital terrain models, digital maps and land cover data.

As a reseller for Space Imaging EurAsia (SIEU), DITSL can also supply high resolution (1m) imagery from the Ikonos satellite. These strategies enable DITSL to have a strategic role in the production of satellite maps for an extensive range of geographical scales.

Further information on the applications of Spot imagery and DITSL's mapping services is available on DITSL's Website www.datatrak.ws, or by contacting Dr Elaine Tabone Adami or Martin Scicluna on 2331-8500 or e-mail geomatics@datatrakit.com.mt.