PortuguêsPRESS RELEASE – EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY – PROJECT “MELT”
EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY “MELT” PROJECT CONSORTIUM CONSISTING OF 4 EUROPEAN TECH COMPANIES DEVELOPING AN ALM (ADDITIVE LAYER MANUFACTURING) BREADBOARD MACHINE FOR ESA
The consortium, consisting of Active Space GmbH (Germany), Active Space SA (Portugal), OHB Systems AG (Germany) and BEEVERYCREATIVE (Portugal), won a public tender launched at the end of 2014 by the European Space Agency, and has been working on the MELT project since June last year. MELT (Manufacturing of Experimental Layer Technology) project’s goal is to design, develop and test a fully functional ALM breadboard model, able to work under microgravity conditions of the ISS (International Space Station) and 3D print with engineering polymers with high end mechanical and thermal properties. BEEVERYCREATIVE is bringing its expertise in 3D printing to the consortium, and is responsible for the design of the ALM breadboard model and its operating software.
The project will be delivered in May 2017, and has several phases scheduled: from studying the “state of the art” of current technologies, development of the actual hardware and software, to testing of the breadboard, followed by the evaluation of 3D printed components. We are really excited to contribute to a new technological era, and together… make the future come true!