Swingby

Swingby is a mobile app meant to help ESA – ESTEC employees benefit from a car-sharing system with a high degree of usability. 

Company size:
enterprise

Industry:
technology, aerospace

Headquarters: 
Paris, France.

The Project

To support its mission of sustainable space transportation, the European Space Agency (ESA) recognized that environmental optimization must begin at home. Satellite imagery of the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) revealed that one-third of the facility’s grounds were occupied by parked cars, primarily due to single-occupant commutes.

In response, the Swingby initiative was born. Swingby is a highly intuitive car-sharing mobile app designed exclusively for ESTEC employees. By acting as a secure intermediary, the app connects drivers and passengers to facilitate shared commutes. Its focused functionality is dedicated solely to establishing initial contact between users, streamlining the car-sharing process without further intervention.

The Solution

Services provided

  • Mobile app development
  • Graphic design
  • Technical specifications
  • Technical support

In 2017, ESA chose Innobyte as a partner to develop their mobile app. Five essential key-facts were considered in the development:

  • Intuitive layout
  • Effective marketing
  • No third-party login (e.g. Facebook)
  • No (avoidable) data-gathering
  • ESA internal data usage

Even though various implementations of car-sharing solutions already exist, Innobyte managed to fulfil ESA’s custom requests in order to create the fitting app for their needs. This way, the most inconvenient aspects of typical car-sharing apps was reduced to a minimum.
The users have access to login, profile info, request ride, offer ride, passenger info, feedback/notification and chat.

Outcomes

The mobile application was engineered to build a robust user base and ensure consistent service availability, fostering long-term engagement within the internal community. While swingby is a bespoke solution exclusively for ESA – ESTEC members, the agency’s commitment to innovation extends to several public-facing initiatives.

Following the success of our initial collaborations, Innobyte was proud to develop the European Space Software Repository (ESSR) for ESA. Launched in September 2015, this web portal serves as a strategic hub for promoting the reuse of software assets, including Open Source projects. The ESSR is accessible to all residents of ESA member states, encouraging a culture of shared innovation across the European space sector.

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