Glasgow built its reputation on shipbuilding. Now the city is Europe’s leading producer of small satellites, and the cubes that power them are roughly the size of a Rubik’s Cube.
Craig Clark came back to Glasgow in 2005, having finished university, and found no satellite work happening north of the border. So he set up his own business, naming it Clyde Space — a nod to the city’s shipbuilding history and the saying that “The Clyde made Glasgow and Glasgow made the Clyde.”
Each side of a CubeSat measures 10cm across, roughly the size of a Rubik’s Cube. These small satellites cost less and take far less time to build than the large satellites that most people imagine. They fit together like building blocks, packed with cameras, sensors and communications equipment, and gather information that helps guide navigation, shipping, farming, energy grids and climate science.
From CubeSat to Cluster
The spark came from Clyde Space. It turned its attention to CubeSats just a few years after the technology caught fire. The firm constructed Scotland’s first satellite, UKube-1, and joined forces with the University of Strathclyde for skill and research.
More firms came on board, including Craft Prospect and Alba Orbital, while established engineering firms entered the supply chain. Spire, an American satellite company, selected Glasgow as its European base in 2015.
Andrew Strain, the chief technology officer at AAC Clyde Space, which came into being following the acquisition of Clyde Space by Swedish firm AAC Microtec, says firms relocated to Glasgow because they noticed the ecosystem expanding. “Companies started moving to Glasgow because they could see that it was possible to do it here, and there was an ecosystem that was starting to grow,” he says.
Daniel Smith, who founded space marketing firm AstroAgency and serves as the Scottish Government’s trade and investment envoy for space, points to a complete small satellite value chain based in the city. That chain covers components, manufacturing, launch, spaceports and ground stations.
The Numbers Behind Glasgow
Scotland’s government claims Glasgow leads Europe for building small satellites. The country’s broader space sector produced £335m in revenue during 2022-23, a rise of 69% from five years prior. Outside conventional satellite TV broadcasting, it now employs 2,811 staff, marking a jump of 81%.
The rise was mostly natural, according to Prof Malcolm Macdonald, who chairs applied space technology at the University of Strathclyde. He says the expansion came about without much planning or direction. “It’s not necessarily that we’re going backwards,” That’s how he describes it. “But other people are catching up.”
The university now has more than 100 people working across space-related activity, with the subject becoming one of the institution’s strategic priorities. Macdonald recalls that when he graduated, there was no local space industry for him to join. Now, “when our graduates leave the university, they will go and work in the local space sector because it is now here in Glasgow for them,” he says.
The Challenge From Bavaria
Germany’s Defence Ministry has announced plans to spend roughly €35bn (£30bn) on military space capabilities over the coming years, with Bavaria positioning itself as a major European centre for aerospace and defence technology. The investment includes more than 100 encrypted communications satellites.
Macdonald argues that such spending is reshaping Europe’s space industry. With the war in Ukraine and broader geopolitical instability serving as the backdrop, governments are no longer merely backing space as a curiosity. Instead, they are treating it as infrastructure.
Glasgow’s lead hangs on a question about whether it can keep it. Both the Scottish and UK governments have stood behind the industry, yet the size of German spending far exceeds what Glasgow has gotten.
What Comes Next
A review of the sector has been commissioned by the Scottish Government. According to Space Scotland’s analysis, space manufacturing alone supported more than 1,000 Scottish jobs in 2022-23. The broader industry contributed £202m to the Scottish economy.
Top executives are cautioning that the contest remains unfinished. Foreign nations are gaining ground, and the shortfall in financing is a genuine concern.
| Sector | 2022-23 Income | Job Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Scottish space industry | £335m | +81% |
| Space manufacturing | £202m | More than 1,000 jobs |
The comparison is stark. Glasgow built its satellite industry without a master plan. It grew from a few engineers in a garage to Europe’s leading producer of small satellites. That organic growth is the city’s strength, and it is also its vulnerability.
Smith says the growth of Glasgow’s satellite industry was not a plan the government drew up. It happened naturally instead. Companies came because they spotted opportunities, and the network of businesses built itself up around them.
Europe’s leading small-satellite city makes the claim for itself, and its name is the Rubik’s Cube-sized component turned out to be the foundation of Glasgow’s. The real test lies ahead: the city must prove it can build these satellites faster than anywhere else in Europe.
Key facts box
– CubeSat dimensions: 10cm x 10cm x 10cm
– Glasgow’s first satellite: UKube-1
– Scottish space industry income: £335m (2022-23)
– Job growth: +81%
– German military space investment: €35bn (£30bn)
Source material: “Europe is pouring billions into space. Can Glasgow's satellite industry keep up?,” the BBC.
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