Who's involved
Industry
Construction of the Cluster and Cluster II spacecraft has been a major enterprise for European industry. Built into each 550 kg satellite are six propellant tanks, two pressure tanks, eight thrusters, 80 metres of pipework, about 5 km of wiring, 380 connectors and more than 14 000 electrical contacts.
Industries in almost all of the 14 ESA member states and the United States have provided hardware for the Cluster II project. The prime contractor is the German company Dornier Satellitensysteme, but many other companies also participated (see map). All of the spacecraft were assembled in the giant clean room at Dornier's Friedrichshafen plant, then sent to IABG in Ottobrunn, near Munich, for intensive vibration, thermal, vacuum and magnetic testing.
Figure 1. Major industrial contractors
Austria |
Austrian Aerospace |
Thermal hardware: multi layer insulation (MLI) |
Schrack |
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Belgium |
Spacebel |
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Denmark |
Terma |
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Alcatel -Kirk |
Power conditioning unit (PCU) | |
Finland |
Finnyards |
Internal Power Dampers (IPD) |
VTT |
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France |
Alcatel |
Telemetry & Telecommand Subsystem (TT&C) |
Aerospatiale |
Pressure Tanks | |
SEP |
Transducer | |
Matra Marconi Space |
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Germany |
Dornier |
Prime Contractor, Solar Arrays, Electrical Ground Segment Equipment, Solid State Recorder |
DASA |
Reaction control system (RCS) equipment | |
IABG |
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Italy |
Laben |
Onboard Data Handling (OBDH) |
FIAR |
Power Subsystem: power distribution unit (PDU) | |
Alenia |
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Officine Galileo |
XBSS | |
Netherlands |
Fokker |
|
TNO/TPO |
Star Mapper | |
Urenco |
Phase Nutation Damper (PND) | |
Norway |
AME Space |
Power conditioning unit (PCU) |
DNV |
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Prototec |
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Spain |
Alcatel |
Transponder assembly |
SENER |
Booms | |
Sweden |
SAAB-Ericsson |
Separation and harness subsystems Low gain antenna (LGA) |
Switzerland |
Contraves |
Structure |
UK |
Matra Marconi Space (MMS-B) |
Attitude / Orbit Control and Monitoring Subsystem (AOCMS) |
GEC Marconi |
Direct Memory Access (DMA) | |
Dowty |
Tanks | |
Ferranti |
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Matra Marconi Space (MMS-P) |
Central Parts Procurement Agency (CPPA) | |
United States |
Moog |
Valves |
Vacco |
Filter | |
OEA |
Pyro | |
Mu Space |
Regulators |