Editorial

Greening the Recovery

A key topic I should highlight in this newsletter is the fact that Critical is part of a Portuguese consortium deploying the vision and layout of the national electric mobility power grid. The solution was unveiled at the "MOBI.E - Energy that Drives us" conference, promoted by the Portuguese government, to present the country's strategy to address electric mobility.

Let me also emphasize the active part that Critical had in the successful launches of the GOCE, Herschel and Planck Satellites, by the European Space Agency. Regarding the GOCE project, Critical was involved in the GOCE Platform Application software (PASW) Module Test. For the Herschel and Planck Satellites, Critical tailored and qualified the operating system - RTEMS - running on the onboard computers of the Herschel and Planck satellites. Both projects illustrate our reputed technical background in the Space industry and are showcases that challenging tasks are at the core of our DNA.

Another very interesting news article is the fact that Critical Health, a company part of the Critical group, has showcased a major breakthrough in predicting Diabetic Retinopathy Progression, at Euretina'09, in France, by presenting the desktop version of Retmarker™. This software product will become the key tool to support ophthalmologists worldwide in the search for optimal management of diabetic retinopathy progression.

At this stage allow me also to draw your attention to the fact that Critical is not only heading the consortium in charge of the EMMON project (EMbedded MONitoring), to develop a functional prototype for real-time monitoring of specific natural scenarios using Wireless Sensor Network devices, but also, together with the Portuguese Aeronautics Industry Consortium, is developing systems for Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles (UAVs) with Lockheed-Martin.

I'll leave you now with a selection of articles on what we have been doing in the past few months. I hope you enjoy reading it and welcome you to drop us feedback and comments.

Rui Melo Biscaia
Marcom Manager

Critical is a member of the Portuguese consortium for electric mobility

As a result of the Portuguese industry coordinated efforts around the theme of electric mobility, Critical Software together with other Portuguese companies set up a consortium that has taken the lead in the definition of a technical framework for the development and implementation of a full-scale innovative solution an Electric Vehicle (EV) charging and support infrastructure. From the charging pods (slow and fast) and their smart interaction with the electric grid for advanced communications, management and aggregated billing, a system concept has been developed with a focus on the user/citizen, allowing systematic integration of the economic, energy and environmental dimensions linked to citizens' mobility.

Critical Software's active contribution to the solution dealt with the:

• Real-time management of the grid charging stations;
• Secure data exchange between the infrastructure and the company responsible for the management of the grid;
• The ability to select different electricity providers at the charging station;
• Remote monitoring of the charging process;
• Visualization of the charging stations geo-location and the status of the grid;
• Information management between the charging station and the electricity provider;
• The possibility of future bi-directionality between vehicle and Grid (Vehicle2Grid).

Read the full press-release here.

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Critical's CEO was awarded the Best Leader Award

Critical Software CEO, Gonçalo Quadros was awarded the New Technologies Best Leader 2009 award. The Best Leader Awards are sponsored by the Business Leadership Consulting company which aims at recognizing individuals who, they believe, have distinguished themselves as leaders in areas such as IT, Management, Public Administration and International growth.

The selection criteria were based on the demonstration of ethical principles, identification of innovative ideas for the organization, achievement of organizational outcomes, talent development and retention capacity.

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Safe Luggage

Nowadays, luggage security is one of the biggest challenges at international airports and other transportation hubs. A trade-off is always in place between additional security measures and need to reduce luggage time processing to provide a better service to all passengers.

Developed in partnership with 3 other Portuguese companies and two scientific institutions, the main purpose of the Safe Luggage R&D project is to create a solution using Radio-Frequency Identification technology or VSN-Virtual Sensor Networks adapted to passengers' luggage handling process. The intelligent bags will increase passenger satisfaction - less time to recover lost luggage - and improve the efficiency of the luggage management system.

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GOCE was launched

The GOCE (Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer) satellite which is part of ESA's fleet of Earth Explorers was launched last March. The development of the GOCE satellite was carried out by an industrial consortium of 45 companies, distributed over 13 European countries, which encompasses Critical Software, requested to support the GOCE Platform Application software (PASW) Module Test.

Critical Software worked with ESA in the development of the GOCE satellite which will measure the gravity field and represent models of the Earth with extremely high accuracy and spatial resolution. This will allow to significantly improve our knowledge about Earth interior processes such as earthquakes and volcanism but also of ocean circulation, which plays a crucial role in energy exchanges around the globe and sea-level change.

Read the full press-release here.

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Critical adapts the operating system of ESA's Herschel and Planck satellites

The Herschel and Planck Satellites, that were considered the more complex missions of the European Space Agency ever, were launched on May 14. Critical Software was engaged to tailor and qualify the operating system running on the computers of the Herschel/Planck missions.

The Herschel Space Observatory is the largest ever infrared space observatory and will observe wavelengths that have never previously been explored. The Planck mission will collect and characterise radiation from the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) using sensitive radio receivers operating at extremely low temperatures.

The RTEMS product - an open source Real Time Operating System - was tailored and qualified for these specific missions by Critical's highly skilled Embedded & Real Time team. Critical was able to refurbish the system so it would fit the constraints and do so in a very tight schedule.

Read the full press-release here.

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Critical leads R&D consortium to develop a functional prototype for the real-time monitoring of specific natural scenarios using Wireless Sensor Network devices

Critical leads the consortium responsible for the EMMON project (EMbedded MONitoring) which is part of part of the ARTEMIS Joint Undertaking from the 7th Framework Program (7FP) of the European Commission. The EMMON project is a result of a consortium of companies that will perform technological research in order to devise more efficient, low power consumption communication protocols.

The EMMON's main objective is the development of a functional prototype for the real-time monitoring of specific natural scenarios (related to the quality of urban life, forest environment, civil protection etc) using Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) devices. The goal of the project is to develop the technology to effectively monitor and control an area of 50 square km - this will involve the deployment of thousands of wireless sensor nodes which will be a massive advance on the current state-of-the-art.

Read the full press-release here.

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Critical develops systems for UAVs with Lockheed-Martin

Critical is involved in the Portuguese Aeronautics Industry Consortium (PAIC), established with the purpose of developing systems for Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles (UAVs) in partnership with Lockheed-Martin. Apart from the aircraft, the project will develop and build the entire system including onboard sensors, avionics equipment and mission control stations.

This consortium of 12 Portuguese institutions and companies will invest a total of 10 million Euros in five years and has already committed to an investment of 1,5 million Euros for 2009. Analysts estimate that the segment of unmanned vehicles platforms (usually called UAVs) and associated services for civil applications is worth about 2.8 billion dollars between 2010 and 2019, at a growing rate of 30% per year.

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Houston, we've got the rock!

The lunar stone brought back by the NASA astronaut James Irwin, in August 1971, from the Apollo 15 mission, "visits" Portugal. Critical sponsored the "visit" of the lunar stone by escorting its trip from the NASA headquarters in Houston, USA, to its final destination, the Science Museum, in Coimbra.

Four decades after the end of the NASA Apollo 11 mission, the first to land on the moon, and as part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 celebrations, this lunar soil sample was in exhibition in Coimbra from May the 22nd until July the 24th. The official opening of the exhibition was held at the University of Coimbra Science Museum.

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Critical and BPI support the SMEs' technological integration

Critical Links, a "sister" company of Critical Software and the Portuguese bank, BPI, sign a protocol that provides exceptional financing solutions for the acquisition of EdgeBOX, a best-of-breed solution for integrated communications, or "Office-in-a-box".

edgeBOX is an appliance that provides a complete voice, data and IT solution for SMEs and enterprise branch offices out of a single box. It replaces a number of specialized hardware and software solutions with a single integrated device that provides a complete and secure networking infrastructure that is simple to install and configure, easy to maintain and upgrade and can be managed remotely. EdgeBOX has been identified as a key player and has won several prizes so far.

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The Portuguese Space Forum 2009

Critical was present in the Portuguese Space Forum 2009. This event, organized by the FCT Space Office, with the support of "Ciência Viva", aimed at gathering the Portuguese Space Community with ESA experts, promoting Portuguese Space Activities, and enabling the debate about future opportunities related to ESA programmes, emerging space technologies and new areas for space applications.

Working for the Space & Launchers, Ground and Earth Observation segments, Critical Software has been supplying best-of-breed high-assurance software solutions to high profile Space industry customers since 1998. These range from engineering services applicable to the production of high integrity software solutions (quality & product assurance, V&V, RAMS) to the customized development of data processing chains for SAR or optical satellite sensors.

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Le Bourget, 100th edition - a particularly successful professional event

Critical Software was present at "The Paris Air Show in Le Bourget" to showcase our offer for the aeronautics and defence markets and it was a particularly successful professional event.

Our Health and Usage Monitoring System, Fleet Planning Tool, together with SABIOS (Supportability, Analysis and Business Integrated Operational System) - a state-of-the-art platform to integrate data from HUMS and Fleet Management Systems -, managed to generate some interesting leads.

Critical specializes in avionics software architecture, system testing and related regulations for the aeronautics civil and military industry. We have reengineered systems of systems to support new business models such as Availability Based Contracting, Supply Chain Management and Maintenance Repair & Operations activities, having delivered turnkey solutions for high profile customers around the globe.

Critical also has a track record in Integrated Modular Avionics for on-board architectures and Model Driven development of safety critical applications, providing specialist consultancy in software development for flight-safe high integrity systems. We have developed a solid track record in delivering and certifying software according to RTCA DO178 up to class A.

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Innovation Days 2009

The Innovation Days 2009 was held at FIL, in Lisbon from June 18 to 20. Organized by Agência de Inovação, in this event Critical exhibited several R&D projects that have been developed by the different companies of the group: Retmarker, VS2, SPRINT, Move and SARA.E were some of them.Innovation Days aims to promote the results of successful market-oriented R&D projects, boosting their economic exploitation and promoting new partnerships between companies, researchers and investors. The event had many interesting exhibitors from around the world. As might be imagined though, a significant proportion was from projects based in Portugal.

Around 500 new technology projects from 300 exhibitors with total solutions in a wide range of configurations showed where developments and innovations are. The exhibition also included debates and round tables which and the main aim was to publicize innovation by Small and Medium sized enterprises.

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e-Gov 2009

Governments are trying to provide better online services to citizens, companies and to the administration bodies. Critical is ideally suited to help public service meet cost and performance targets, by developing tightly integrated systems that require ever-increasing levels of interoperability and security. Personal identity theft is a growing concern and countries need to introduce high-tech methods of identity management to prevent it.

"Identity Management for an efficient and secure public administration" was the topic of Critical's presentation at the eGovernment & eHealth IDC event, which took place last June the 2nd, at Centro Cultural de Belèm (Lisbon). This event intended to present technological projects with positive impact on quality, safety and service costs, while demonstrating how companies like critical have been developing their work, in order to answer to costumers and professionals needs.

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e-Justice 09

Critical was present at Pavilhão de Portugal for the e-Justice 2009 event. Promoted by the Portuguese Ministèrio da Justiça, this event was an opportunity to show new technological innovations that have been made available for citizens and companies. Critical develops sustainable e-Justice systems and services with a special emphasis on proceedings dematerialization projects for judicial.

Critical showcased several solutions and products in the company's portfolio, such as: csSECURE, ISVV, csARCH, among others. Particularly, Critical emphasized the development of the SISone4ALL project. This upgrade of the Schengen Information System allowed the enlargement of Schengen Space and is a clear recognition of our capacity to excel on delivering innovative and reliable solutions for the Homeland Security market.

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Critical sponsors the first edition of the "Idea Simplex" award

Critical sponsored the 1st edition of the "Ideia Simplex" award. The main objective of the "Idea Simplex" award was to stimulate the innovation capacity, in terms of administrative simplification, of the Portuguese public servants. The later were asked to submit ideas that simplify administrative procedures and decrease bureaucracy, thus bringing the public and governmental institutions closer together. Critical ensured the prize funding and participated in the board in charge of selecting the best ideas among the 313 applications received.

For years now, Critical has been working closely with governmental bodies in areas such as administrative simplification and processes dematerialization. Moreover, has created an internal project, called "ideas-To-income", which aims at enhancing the generation of innovative ideas across the entire organization and making use of the collective potential of Critical's workers.

Read the full press-release here.

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Critical puts European mathematicians to the test

Critical has put several mathematicians from all over Europe to the test, in an initiative organized by Universidade de Coimbra. In a 4-day science marathon, the company raised several high complexity problems in search for easy solutions to implement.

The questions were related to resources allocation, fluid mechanics, computer networks and telecommunications, among others. Over the years, Critical has developed a close partnership with Portuguese and international universities considering that the emphasis on information and knowledge sources are strong advantages for the future.

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CRITICAL LINKS

Critical Materials

Critical Materials present at the UTEN Portugal Workshop and moves to Spinpark

The UTEN Portugal Workshop was held, last March at Instituto Superior Tècnico, in Lisbon, Portugal. This event was sponsored by Portuguese Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and the topic was Experiencing Technology Transfer & Commercialization: Fostering a New Dialogue with MIT. Gustavo Dias, Critical Materials' CEO, presented the case study of Critical Materials and its relation with University of Minho in terms of valuing faculty know-how through high tech start-ups. This workshop aimed to promote globally competitive and sustainable scientific and technological know-how commercialization.

Critical Materials has recently moved to new facilities at Spinpark, a technology-based business incubator in Guimarães, Portugal. Critical Materials seeks the proximity of the University of Minho Business Campus, thus boosting the development of its product & Services portfolio.

Critical Materials, a technology provider for the "nervous system and bio-brain" of critical applications of advanced materials, is committed to supply technology and efficient products for monitoring and diagnosis of critical applications of intelligent materials for the aerospace and defence markets.

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Critical Health

Critical Health's is working to help the prevention of one of the leading causes of blindness in the world - Diabetic Retinopathy. One of the company's solutions, Retmarker, has been available as a free trial at www.retmarker.com, since January, 2009. The company was present at the Euretina's Congress in Nice, France, last May, for the worldwide launch of Retmarker desktop version! This first product of Critical Health will be available in two versions: one for a screening purposes, RetmarkerC, and the other focused on the prediction of the development of the disease to a sight threatening stage - RetmarkerDR.

The RetmarkerDR software solution is a breakthrough in predicting Diabetic Retinopathy progression from a Nonproliferative stage to Clinically Significant Macular Edema (CSME), a sight-threatening stage. The solution is based on the latest research on Microaneurysm Turnover, the new and most reliable biomarker of Diabetic Retinopathy progression. This product is a critical tool to support ophthalmologists worldwide in the search for optimal management of diabetic retinopathy progression. Also, RetmarkerDR helps to deliver quality care and to reduce total healthcare spending by increasing the healthcare provider's productivity and reliability in the management of Diabetic Retinopathy and other retinal diseases.

You can access more information on this product version by downloading the official brochure here.

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UK

HighRely and Critical Software Technologies join forces in transatlantic collaboration

High Rely and Critical Software Technologies, the UK subsidiary of Critical Software, will share market intelligence and each will provide specialist services to the other for the benefit of their respective European clients. The companies have announced collaboration aimed at jointly increasing their penetration of the European market for high-integrity software. High Rely, Inc. is a provider of engineering services for critical embedded products to prime contractors and systems integrators in the US. Critical Software Technologies provides high integrity software services and safety critical systems development for mission oriented industries - aerospace, transportation and defence & security.

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Contact us
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, do not hesitate to contact us.

In order to do so, please use the form at our website by clicking here.

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About Critical Software S.A.
Critical Software is an international company that provides solutions, services and technologies for mission and business critical information systems. The company was founded in 1998, is headquartered in Coimbra and has offices in Lisbon and Oporto (Portugal), San Jose (US) and subsidiaries in Southampton (UK), Bucharest (Romania) and S.Paulo - São Josè dos Campos (Brazil). Critical Software supports customers across several markets including Aeronautics, Space, Defence, Transportation, Manufacturing, Telecom, Government, Finance and Energy. Customers include Siemens, NASA, Soporcel, ESA, Vodafone, Eumetsat, EADS, Astrium, ChevronTexaco, Deutsch Telekom, AgustaWestland, among many others renowned in Europe and the US. The company operates a quality system certified to CMMI® Level3, ISO 9001:2000 Tick-IT, ISO 15504, AQAP 2120 and EN9100.

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Critical Group
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