It's a hot market nowadays for satellite amplifier technology. Everyone has got to have an amplifier to boost signal reception. So a bunch of companies are now competing to provide all those customers with this now-needed equipment. But can these suppliers satisfy the demand for satellite amplifiers? And can the market support all these competing companies?
The constant, unending demands for more and more satellite capacity increases the need for new technology and solutions close the gap. The arrival of high-powered Ka-band satellites, while a solution to the need for bandwidth, also placed a massive demand on the infrastructure that powered these new systems. The new platforms required new technologies and techniques, which in turn opens up new markets for equipment that support and enhance the new or improved services, such as satellite amplifiers.
Amplifier technology vendors have scrambled to meet the demand from satellite operators like Hughes, Eutelsat, ViaSat, and Inmarsat. These companies invested significant amounts into Ka-band satellite technology. And they are apparently satisfied with the quality and quantity of the supply of satellite amplifiers.
“We certainly feel that the success of these satellites is critical to the future of the satellite industry," said Andy Tafler, head of CPI’s satcom division. "Meeting the satellite system providers’ requirements for very high power and very high quality gateways has really pushed the capabilities of both Traveling Wave Tube Amplifiers (TWTA) and Solid State Power Amplifiers (SSPA) amplifiers. What they have asked from the amplifier industry and the tube vendors is to push their capabilities," Tafler said. "Manufacturers have risen to the challenge, and these systems have been operating successfully and on time."
In short, the answer to the first question is 'yes.' And the second question can also be answered by a 'yes.'
According to Daniel Enns, senior vice president, business development for Comtech EF Data, the Ka-band market presents some unique issues that vendors must overcome. “The challenge in Ka-band is that there are military bands and commercial bands,” he pointed out. “The number of different bands raises questions: Do I have the right amplifier for the right band, and for the right application or customer requirement? So, we need to predict the right band for the right application so that we can have the right amplifiers built when there is demand."
SVP Enns goes on to say that the military market certainly has a lot of demand for satellite amplifier technology. "The WGS Ka-band for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) is being deployed," he said. "Many of the foreign DODs are getting on the bandwagon for the WGS, so that is driving the demand for international Ka-band. In the Middle East, there are several other satellites that have Ka-band capacity that are also looking at the enterprise market.”
Cristi Damian, vice president, operations, Advantech Wireless, brings up the theme of more demanding customers. “Our customers are demanding high-linearity, high-efficiency and high-power,” she said. “We see a migration from the traditional 30 GHz to 31 GHz market to lower 26 GHz to 30 GHz frequencies, as well as a demand for higher bandwidth SSPAs." As a result, Advantech invested in Ka-band solid state technology for over nine years running now.
Marion Van Fosson, vice president and general manager, CVG-Avtec, believes that the key to success in the market is providing dual-use products that can serve both commercial and military segments. “Tier I OEMs would like to have a dual-use product that can support both the commercial and military bands," he said, "so amplifiers that can operate over a wide Ka-band range to satisfy both military and commercial requirements are desirable."
So far, there's enough business to go around for everyone who wants a slice of the pie chart of profit in the Ka-band market. The CEO of Miteq, Howard Hausman, reveals that his company wants such a slice. He also brought up statistics regarding the levels of data traffic, and uses these statistics as proof of why the Ka-band sector will place such a heavy yoke on technology vendors.
“We supply nearly every major Ka-band satcom system," Mr. Hausman said, "and we expect further growth over the remainder of the year. The projections for ever-increasing data transmission are simply staggering with Ka-band satcom being the critical transmission link to achieve these demands. To give just one example," he noted, "at a recent Air Force conference it was stated that traffic will grow by a factor of 50 over the next five years.”
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