Trifork invests in the mission to Mars
Trifork, the first investor in Mars One
Amsterdam, The Netherlands — February 1 , 2013— Trifork BV is the first investor in the initiative from the Interplanetary Media Group, the Mars One daughter company which manages the intellectual property and media associated with the human mission to Mars. The funds that Trifork will contribute to will be used to finance the Conceptual Design Studies and the launch of the global Astronaut Selection Program.
Peter Meijer, Chief Operating Officer for Trifork BV says, "From the first moment I heard about the project, I knew we wanted to be a part of something that has never been done before. He continues, "The project reflects entrepreneurship and a technical challenge to seek out the boundaries in many ways, both qualities that Trifork prides itself in too."
“Organizing a human mission to Mars is indeed a tremendously complex venture", states Kai Staats, Director of Business Development for Mars One. He continues, "There are many engineering hurdles to overcome and the total funds required are tremendous. Raising a few million [US dollars] in the coming months may seem insignificant in the shadow of the pending billions required, but we are taking it one step at a time. These first few bring tangible demonstration to nearly two years in planning. For us, committed funds in this phase of development are an important indicator we are moving in the right direction.”
In the first half of 2013, Mars One will award the Conceptual Design studies to industry suppliers. These are sophisticated engineering bids, technical plans which lay the foundation for the major components such as the transport vehicles, space suits, life support systems and living modules on Mars. These will substantiate the Mission plan with real-world engineering designs and data.
Mars One will also launch the Astronaut Selection Program which immediately, directly involves people from around the world. This is a new paradigm for anyone who is interested to participate in space travel. As Mars One is anticipating hundreds of thousands, perhaps more than one million applicants, the infrastructure required to professionally manage such a process is substantial. Trifork will also play a pivotal role in how this infrastructure is developed from both a technical aspect as well as from a scalability perspective.
About Trifork
Trifork was founded in 1996 and is listed on NASDAQ OMX in Copenhagen. It is an innovative software development company focusing on Mobile, Agile and Cloud. It develops and delivers business critical IT systems for several sectors including finance, healthcare, government, manufacturing and telecom. Trifork employs 180 people in 8 offices in Aarhus, London, Copenhagen, Zürich, Amsterdam, Krakow, Stockholm and San Francisco. At the end of 2011 Trifork had a market value at almost DKKm 256 / EUR 34M, with a turnover of DKKm 175 / EUR 23M.
About Mars One
Mars One is a not-for-profit organization that will establish a permanent human settlement on Mars in 2023 through the integration of existing, readily available technologies from industry leaders world-wide. Unique in its approach, Mars One intends to fund this decade-long endeavor by involving the whole world as the audience of an interactive, televised broadcast of every aspect of this mission, from launch to landing to living on Mars.
For more information please contact:
Sejal Korenromp
Global Brand & Marketing Director
Email: sejal.korenromp@trifork.com