Inmarsat, a UK Satellite internet and communications operator, has won Britain's biggest prize in engineering innovation - the Royal Academy of Engineering's MacRobert Award - for its "groundbreaking" Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN).

The BGAN service provides internet data connectivity anywhere on earth and is widely used for remote connectivity for business, government, broadcasters, aid and relief agencies, and emergency services. The service is also used by many major TV broadcasters.


BGAN itself is based off the 3G (3rd Generation) mobile communication standard, which is similar to the one used by many ground based mobile operators today. The 3G standard had to be significantly adapted for delivery from satellites at 35,600km above the earth, and Inmarsat took a calculated risk in committing to 3G a year before it was formally approved.

The risk has paid off, with Inmarsat's first-quarter results this year showing that revenue soared by nearly 12% to £187.4 million. The BGAN 3G communication service was officially launched with the first Inmarsat-4 satellite in 2005 and has since been joined by a third satellite.

At 6 metric tonnes, Inmarsat-4 F1 was at its launch the largest telecommunications satellite ever built. It also carries an innovative unfurling antenna and has a plasma propulsion system. In total, around £1.5 billion has been invested in BGAN. The result is the only simultaneous global voice and 0.5Mbps data service available anywhere on the planet, which uses satellite terminals the size of laptops.

Academy President Lord Browne of Madingley presented the team with a £50,000 prize and the solid gold MacRobert Award medal during the Academy Awards Dinner at London's Guildhall last night.