Fleet Space Technologies has announced that the Australian Government has committed $20 million to the development of the Space Manufacturing Hub in Adelaide, South Australia. This adds to funds already committed by The Government of South Australia (A$20 million) and a consortium of leading space, aerospace and advanced air mobility companies including Fleet, Q-CTRL, AtSpace Pty Ltd and Alauda Aeronautics, the manufacturer of the world’s first, electric, flying racing cars. That total value of the project is A$66 million.
This state-of-the-art facility will enable the further growth of Fleet Space Technologies in line with Australia’s ambitions to create one of the world’s leading space industries. In total 221 jobs are expected to be created in the sector across Fleet Space Technologies and its partners. A further 1,104 indirect jobs can also be created in the supply chain and associated businesses.
The Space Manufacturing Hub is set to be one of the most advanced facilities of its kind in the world and will create a common user facility that will support Australia’s rapidly growing space industry and its overall space ecosystem. This forms a key strategic pillar of the space National Manufacturing priority by playing a critical next step in supporting Australia’s space industry to scale and compete globally. The Space Manufacturing Hub will provide the required facilities to design, manufacture, test and launch critical components for space-going vehicles and satellites. This will include highly innovative approaches pioneered by Fleet, including the development of ‘Alpha’, an entirely new constellation of small satellites using the latest additive manufacturing and 3D printing technology. This will drive down costs and democratize a technology that enables global connectivity across multiple sectors and user-cases.
The Hyper Factory by Fleet Space will harness the power of local robotics and automation capabilities and will enable the development and manufacture of vehicles for Moon to Mars missions including lunar rovers. Overall, this will play a major role in providing Australian businesses with connections to the global space economy.
Building Australia’s Space Industry
The Fleet Space’s Alpha smallsat constellation will be designed, engineered and manufactured from the Hyper Factory and will integrate beamforming antennas and electronics.
The Australian Space Park in which Fleet Space Technology will build the Hyper Factory will be the first of its kind in the southern hemisphere. Four companies, Fleet Space Technologies, Q-CTRL, ATSpace and Alauda Aeronautics, will co-locate in a purpose-built facility with a focus on collaboration and production of small satellites and their payloads, rockets, electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOL), and supporting component and technical systems.
Adelaide Airport has been identified by the industry consortium as an ideal location for the Australian Space Park due to its proximity to traditional aerospace companies and the central business district and innovation precinct, Lot Fourteen, which is home to a growing community of space companies. The State Government is in discussions with Adelaide Airport as a potential location for the Australian Space Park.
As the centerpiece of the nation’s space endeavors, the state is presently targeting an annual growth rate in the space sector of 5.8 per cent over the next decade.
The rapid growth of Fleet Space Technologies and its space tech cohorts indicates that Australia is fast becoming a global leader in space technology. Australia was one of the first countries to launch a satellite into space from its home soil, and subsequently its leaders have consistently voiced a requirement for the nation to continue growing its presence and capability in this critical sector. The nation itself relies heavily on space technology to power the everyday lives of its people – from communication services to Earth observation for navigation purposes and weather forecasting.
“The addition of this very significant investment from the Australian Government to the funds already pledged by the South Australian Government is affirmation of our nation’s commitment to the development of a rapidly growing industry and innovation in sovereign technological capabilities in space manufacturing. Fleet Space Technologies is proud to lead the Austrian space sector. This industry is creating jobs, technological capability and lasting economic impact for Australia. The Space Hub in Adelaide will position South Australia as a true global centre of excellence in the development of space technologies,” said Flavia Tata Nardini, CEO and Co-Founder, Fleet Space Technologies
Australia already boasts commercial rocket launches and a burgeoning space-centric software industry, positioning the nation as a capable, strategic and globally engaged leader in the field. Homegrown Australian technology is also supporting the wider space industry. Fleet Space will join the Seven Sisters’ Australian space industry consortium in support of NASA’s Artemis program to land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024 and create a sustainable human presence for later crewed Martian exploration.
Fleet Space Technologies is Australia’s leading space company and operates from a state-of-the-art HQ in Adelaide, South Australia, a region rapidly emerging as a global center of excellence in space and advanced aerospace technologies. The company has designed, built and launched the country’s only commercial satellites and has six satellites already on-orbit as it works toward a mission building a constellation of 140 smallsats in LEO.
