Airbus Defence and Space, a division of aircraft manufacturer Airbus Group, is building a new €43 million Integrated Technology Centre (ITC) at its space installations complex in Friedrichshafen, Germany.
The firm is Europe’s leading defence and space enterprise and the second largest space business worldwide.
Its activities include space, military aircraft and related systems and services.
At the heart of the four-storey centre with a basement and a footprint of around 4,200m2 will be a large central cleanroom for the development and construction of satellites.
The 70x60m building, with a height of more than 20m, will be an expansion of Hall 6, which is the firm's current satellite integration facility.
The preliminary work – the demolition of the existing low buildings – has already begun.
Building work will start in November and the new centre will begin operations in the summer of 2018.
The Friedrichshafen site will become a global 'centre of gravity' of satellite construction
'The investment in the new ITC building makes the site a global 'centre of gravity' of satellite construction,' said Eckard Settelmeyer, Head of Site Friedrichshafen at Airbus Defence and Space.
'This not only presents new possibilities for performing existing work, but also for acquiring new projects, such as large space telescopes with dimensions of 15m and above.'
He also said the company will be in a good position to handle projects that require ISO 5 cleanrooms (formerly known as Class 100).
The new centre will play a pivotal role in a future comprehensive reorganisation of work areas and processes at the site.
The lakeside factory in Friedrichshafen has continually expanded and been rearranged over its 60-year history, which has led to the laboratory and testing facilities being spread across the entire site.