Disruptive innovation, 3D printed rocket Unicorn E round raises US$650 million to expand rocket production

A rocket with 100 times fewer parts was manufactured in less than 60 days,3D printingRocket company RELATIVITY SPACE, as a leading private aerospace company with important technology and commercial power, raised US$650 million in round E to expand rocket production. The company’s latest round of financing will help promote its fully reusable, fully 3D printed Rocket Terran R is produced and supports long-term development.

This round of investment was led by Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC. New investors included BlackRock, Centricus, Coatue and Soroban Capital, as well as the participation of original investors.

Relativity Space

From small rocket to big rocket

Relativity Space is the first company to 3D print most of the rocket parts and manufacture the world’s largest metal 3D printer. According to3D printingAfter the fully 3D printed rocket Terran R, the company’s latest round of financing made possible the development of Terran R’s large-scale manufacturing plan and long-term infrastructure development. Reduce the number of rocket parts by 100 times and shorten the development speed by 10 times. This is Relativity Space. Relativity Space and most applications in the world3D printingThe technology of rocket manufacturers is different in that Relativity is not only through3D printingTechnology to manufacture smaller rocket engine parts, and also through3D printingManufacture a large number of large rocket parts.

Disruptive innovation that drastically reduces the number of parts

Relativity Space through metal3D printingManufacture at least 95% of the rocket’s parts and about half of them3D printingThe parts are manufactured by Stargate, a large metal additive manufacturing equipment independently developed by Relativity Space, and the other half are manufactured by other brands of selective laser melting (SLM) equipment. As a two-stage, 216-foot-high, 16-foot-diameter, 5-meter-long payload fairing rocket, Terran R will be fully reusable and capable of launching at the company’s Cape Canaveral starting in 2024 field. Terran R has unique aviation characteristics, complex structure, and can launch 20 times more payload than Terran 1.

Terran R will be equipped with seven 3D printed Aeon R rocket engines capable of generating 302,000 pounds of thrust, and its upper stage will be equipped with an Aeon 1 vac engine. Terran R also represents a leap forward in Relativity Space’s mission to build a multi-planetary future for mankind, and ultimately provides customers with a point-to-point space transportation that can perform missions between the Earth, the Moon and Mars.With a new 3D printing production method, Relativity has created a new technology stack for aerospace, using software-driven3D printingThe creation of unique design geometric shapes that cannot be achieved in traditional manufacturing has promoted unprecedented innovation and subversion.

According to Tim Ellis, CEO and co-founder of Relativity Space, since Relativity Space was founded five years ago on Y Combinator, it plans to 3D print Terran 1 on its future factory platform, and then Terran R-a big 20. A fully reusable rocket that is doubled. 3D printing has brought disruptive innovation-reducing the number of parts, increasing the speed of innovation, flexibility and reliability-to introduce the next generation of launch vehicles to the market. And this is the logic behind Relativity Space’s strong financing capabilities.

Stride forward to obtain commercial orders

Relativity has won nine launch contracts from private and government customers. According to the understanding of 3D Science Valley, in the past six months, Relativity Space has achieved development milestones in business and technology, including signing with Terran R’s first major customer, and Terran 1 continues to gain recognition in the commercial field , Including the recently announced customer contract with TriSept, the first launch contract with the U.S. Department of Defense, and the VCLS Demo 2 contract with NASA.

In the past year, despite the impact of COVID-19 on the overall economy of the world, Relativity has accelerated the pace of recruitment, currently has more than 400 employees, and plans to recruit another 200 team members in 2021. Subverting the aerospace industry for 60 years, Relativity has radically simplified the supply chain. Through the integration of 3D printing, artificial intelligence, proprietary software and autonomous robotics, Relativity has not only subverted the supply chain of rocket manufacturing, but also created a A new value chain.

(Editor in charge: admin)