Company Spotlight: EECL

London-based RF specialist has become one of the UK’s most trusted suppliers of space-qualified hardware.

Founded in 2016 by Dr Ben Kieniewicz, EECL began as a one-person consultancy and has since grown into a high-performing engineering company with a global customer base and a reputation for delivering complex RF and microwave systems.

With a background spanning BAE Systems, Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL), and Teledyne, Ben brought a wealth of hands-on experience to the business. The turning point came with an early consultancy contract for Airbus OneWeb, which gave him the capital and confidence to invest in his own high-end specialised equipment essential for high-precision manufacturing and testing.

Image Credit EECL: EECL team when they delivered the engineering model of the Lunar Pathfinder GNSS receiver to ESA and SSTL

This helped the company overcome one of the biggest barriers for start-ups in the space electronics sector: access to advanced facilities. Without initial cleanroom environments or thermal test chambers, EECL invested heavily to build these capabilities in-house, enabling complete control over the design, manufacture, and qualification of flight hardware.

That decision soon paid off. EECL secured and delivered a €1 million European Space Agency (ESA) contract to design, build and test a GPS receiver payload for SpacePNT for the Luna Pathfinder mission to the Moon. Since then, the company has delivered 21 spaceflight payloads and completed more than 60 successful projects, with hardware now flying in orbit. They are also an approved supplier to SSTL and Airbus and deliver both consultancy and flight-qualified hardware to major international clients in the US, Switzerland, France, Australia, Spain, Ireland, and of course, the UK.

Image Credit EECL: EECL built and delivered hardware heading to the Moon on Lunar Pathfinder, delivered to ESA and SSTL, Built and tested in EECL’s Class 7 cleanroom, this delivery marks a major milestone for the team.

Specialising entirely in RF and microwave systems, EECL develops a wide range of products and solutions for both space and non-space applications, including low-noise receivers, frequency converters, amplifiers, filters, antennas and automated test systems. Their capabilities extend up to 85 GHz, including W-band, an area few UK firms currently operate in.

What sets EECL apart is their ability to offer a turnkey approach, handling projects from the initial concept through to manufacture and delivery. This includes in-house capabilities for space flight assembly, EMC testing, thermal vacuum testing, vibration testing, and shock testing. They are now heavily involved in manufacturing flight hardware. Unlike companies that might only offer off-the-shelf products, EECL provides bespoke solutions and can customise existing products, adapting hardware and even rewriting software to meet exact customer needs.

Image Credit EECL: EECL is equiped with the latest assembly and rework equipment. Picture BGA chip rework.

In one notable project, EECL delivered an X-band frequency converter module for a US company’s space-based data centre. It was designed, built, tested and delivered within just 16 weeks. In another, they built and installed large-scale meta-material antennas for the University of Surrey’s 6G research programme, completing the work in nine weeks during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company also places a strong emphasis on collaboration. As a member of Space South Central, EECL is actively engaged with the regional space cluster and regularly partners with other businesses and research institutions on projects. 

Image Credit EECL: Our facility is equipped with a comprehensive suite of advanced test and assembly equipment covering frequencies to 100 GHz.

Looking ahead, EECL’s focus is on balancing consultancy with scalable product development. After several years developing a range of specialist RF and microwave products, the company is now targeting international markets and preparing to showcase its technology at major global events, including the International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in San Francisco. It’s a chance to showcase their unique capabilities to a wider international audience and grow the business beyond its consultancy roots.

Now a ten-person team, with plans to grow further in 2025, EECL is continuing to invest in talent, equipment, and facilities to meet increasing demand. With product development becoming a more central focus, the company is refining a suite of off-the-shelf RF equipment based on its most successful bespoke designs. These products are already attracting attention from global defence and aerospace customers.

“We’re different from the big players,” says Ben. “We don’t just sell a box off the shelf. If a customer needs something bespoke with different performance, different housing, different software, we can do that. 

“Our approach is simple: Listen to the customer. Solve their problem. And deliver something that works.”