The US Department of Defence and the US Navy have awarded the startup Ursa Major a contract worth 12.5 million dollars for the development of new solid-fuel rocket engines. The company, which was founded in 2015 and specialises in the production of rocket engines using 3D printing, will double the amount, so that a total of 25 million dollars will flow into the project.
The investment comes from the Ministry of Defence’s Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) and marks its first publicly announced funding. Launched in 2022, the OSC aims to attract more private capital for defence technologies.
The contract underlines the need for innovation in rocket motor production. Currently, only a few defence companies can produce solid rocket motors, which is problematic given the increased demand due to the war in Ukraine. Bill Murray, Chief Product Officer at Ursa Major, explains the situation: ‘At current production rates, it would take between five and 18 years to replace the required motors. This is mainly due to outdated manufacturing techniques.’
Ursa Major relies on additive manufacturing to optimise the production of complex components and enable faster iterations in design. Murray emphasises the efficiency: ‘While conventional manufacturing processes can take over a year, we produce the motors in less than a month.’ 3D printing makes it possible to produce components that would normally consist of dozens of individual parts welded together as one solid piece.
The company has previously won government contracts, including a contract with the US Air Force Research Laboratory to develop an engine for hypersonic launches last year.
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