NASA’s Orion crew capsule will be made of 100 3D-printed parts

By Warren Miller, contributing writer

3D printing is becoming a larger and larger part of industrial production with each passing day here on Earth — so it was only a matter of time before it made its way into outer space. Lockheed Martin Space, in conjunction with Stratasys Ltd. and Phoenix Analysis & Design Technologies, announced  that they will be producing 3D-printed parts for NASA’s Orion spacecraft.

The Orion is designed to travel thousands of miles beyond the moon, propelled by the Space Launch System and touted as the most powerful rocket in the world. Its first mission will be unmanned and is expected to last about three weeks. If all goes well, astronauts will be on board for its second mission soon thereafter. The Orion will incorporate over 100 3D-printed parts, engineered and manufactured by the triumvirate of applied technology companies.

“Working with PADT, Stratasys, and NASA has enabled us to achieve highly consistent builds that move beyond the realm of prototyping and into production,” glows Brian Kaplun, Manager of Additive Manufacturing at Lockheed Martin Space. “We’re not just creating parts; we’re reshaping our production strategy to make spacecraft more affordable and faster to produce.”

Image source: Business Wire.

3D printing seems to be ideally suited for small-production runs wherein it is desirable to have the ability to quickly customize and improve pieces of the system. Each use of an element in a system provides valuable data that can be used to modify and improve the elements and, thus, the overall system. After a few improvements, the system may be ready for larger print runs. This process is very reminiscent of a familiar 2D version. With print newspapers, the first few papers were tested and ink levels, colors, and production speeds adjusted prior to a full-production run.

Most of the 3D-printed components will be made of production-grade thermoplastics, materials ideally suited for withstanding the harsh environs of deep space. Resistance to extreme temperatures, chemicals, and force are all imperative for any component to function in such conditions. A combination of such components forms a ring outside of the Orion’s docking hatch, a mechanism that was on display at the 34^th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs last month.

“The demands of space travel require extremely high-performance materials and the most rigorous manufacturing processes in the industry,” said Scott Sevcik , Vice President of Manufacturing at Stratasys. “Part integrity and repeatability are essential and must pass NASA’s demanding testing and validation process.”

3D printing has been primarily used for modeling until recently, but this collaboration with NASA could signal a move toward 3D printing becoming a bigger factor in industrial production. As the technology improves, so will its cost-effectiveness and speed, two issues that have held 3D printing back from being more commonly used in mass production in the past. NASA obviously has very stringent requirements for everything incorporated into its spacecraft, so their willingness to use 3D-printed materials is a good sign for the technology moving forward.