VRI - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• CEO
• Managing Director
• President

Koen Puimege, CEO of Antwerp Space, is the president of VRI. Kris Vanderhauwaert is the managing director. Some keynote figures of the sector in Flanders: since the nineties, the space sector in Flanders has seen a considerable growth, both in turnover and in work force. The sector employs directly approximately 1,400 people with an overall turnover of 400 million (2021). 1/3 of this turnover stems from ESA, the European Space Agency whereas the remaining 2/3 is coming from other sources, mainly the worldwide commercial space market. Although the importance of ESA has decreased relatively over the past years (at the start of VRI almost 100 % of the turnover came directly from ESA) ESA remains an extremely important partner for our industry. A regular consultation with the Belgian federal authority that represents Belgium at ESA remains therefore crucial for the members of VRI. As a follow-up of the IBN cluster, VRI is coordinating since 2021 on the request of the Flemish Government an ambitious programme for the development of a space economy in Flanders. This programme, which is called Flanders Space, consists of 4 main focus areas. For more information, please visit the Flanders Space website on www.