Made In Space (Redwire)

Made In Space is a space-based manufacturing company founded in 2010, which started by making 3D printers usable in microgravity.

Created: 2018-11-01

Updated: 2021-01-08

Classification

In-Space Manufacturing

Category

In-Space Manufacturing
In-Space Assembly

Fields

ZBLAN
Large Space Structures
Additive Manufacturing (3D printing)
Orbital Microfabrication

Status

2) Demonstrated

First launch

2018

In parallel they privately funded the development of expertise and technology to produce fibre in space. Their first fibre machine visible on Figure 5 was launched to the ISS in 2017 to test the system and draw some fiber. Same unit was returned to Earth and sent back to ISS again in 2018. More fiber was drawn in April 2018 and the unit was returned to Earth in the summer of 2018. The results are proprietary, but in August 2018 they raised their first outside funding round when before they primarily sustained themselves through government grants.

[The Turbine Ceramic Manufacturing Module (CMM)](http://The Turbine Ceramic Manufacturing Module (CMM)) is a commercial in-space manufacturing device designed to demonstrate proof-of-principle single-piece ceramic turbine blisk manufacturing in microgravity for terrestrial use. 
Manufacturing turbine components in microgravity could produce parts with better performance including higher strength and lower residual stress, due to a reduction in defects caused by gravity, such as sedimentation and composition gradients. This technology demonstrates potential use of the space station for unique manufacturing capabilities which could increase commercial utilization of ISS. 
CMM also represents the addition of an entirely new 3D printing technology on the ISS. This facility will be the first stereolithography (SLA) printer to operate on orbit. This 3D printing method employs UV-curable resin and a UV laser to form 3D printed objects. SLA printing is ideal for manufacturing high-accuracy parts with complex geometries. MIS pioneered manufacturing capabilities in space with its first- and second-generation 3D printers, with on-orbit operations dating back to 2014.  

• Developing a Glass Alloy Manufacturing Machine (GAMMA), an experimental system designed to investigate how glass alloys form without the effects of gravity-induced flaws. The microgravity environment of space is expected to enable much higher quality glass products by eliminating the Earth-based impacts of convection, sedimentation, and solute buildup, which lead to nucleation, or crystal-forming sites in the materials. This system could improve processes for commercial product development. Product applications include optical fiber, lenses, and optical devices across several market segments including telecommunications, sensors and laser technology industries.
• Developing an autonomous, high throughput manufacturing capability for production of high quality, lower cost semiconductor chips at a rapid rate. Terrestrial semiconductor chip production suffers from the impacts of convection and sedimentation in the manufacturing process. Fabricating in microgravity is expected to reduce the number of gravity-induced defects, resulting in more usable chips per wafer. Market applications include semiconductor supply chains for telecommunications and energy industries. 

[1] http://madeinspace.us/

[2] https://www.madeinspaceeurope.com/newsroom/press-releases/2020/9/1/made-in-space-europe-and-momentus-to-demonstrate-robotic-orbital-transportation-services

[3] https://www.nasa.gov/leo-economy/nasa-selects-for-projects-optical-fibers-stem-cells-enable-low-earth-orbit-economy