Saab Aerostructures manufactures backbone for satellite
In late June, Saab Ericsson Space received its first order from Alcatel for a Spacebus central cylinder for a telecommunications satellite.
Saab Aerostructures is, as a supplier to Saab Ericsson Space, manufacturing the carbon fiber shell, the load-bearing construction for the central cylinder.
“I am happy for Saab Ericsson Space and for us as a supplier. I know that they’ve worked hard to get this order, but now production of the first serial unit can start here in earnest,” says Pontus Kallén, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Saab Aerostructures.
Saab Aerostructures is producing the ‘shell’ for the central cylinder, a carbon fiber cylinder almost four meters long with a diameter of 1.2 meters. It is made using a sandwich technique to ensure it is strong yet very light, and it is the load-bearing structure, the backbone in Alcatel’s Spacebus satellites. A qualification module has been produced and tested in partnership with the customer to prove that the structure can withstand the forces it will be subjected to, primarily during the launch. The shell for the qualification example was completed back in January 2003, and since then static load tests have been carried out at Saab Ericsson Space in Linköping. The first satellite to be built using the new product is scheduled to be launched into space in 2007 and will be used for civil telecommunication.
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