Bremen, 25 August 2014. MT Aerospace AG, a company belonging to the European aerospace and technology group OHB AG, today symbolically opened the gates to its new production site for the upper-stage tank of the Ariane 5 Midlife Evolution (Ariane 5 ME) in Bremen, in the presence of numerous guests of honour. It is planned that MT Aerospace will be able to commence production of the tanks for the new ARIANE 5ME in December 2014, after 13 months spent building the 4,000 m2 plant at Bremen Airport – right next to the manufacturing hangar that Airbus Defence and Space is currently also in the process of constructing. The new procedure for the rocket tanks requires that the parts move from Airbus to MT Aerospace and back four times during the manufacturing process.
"It was the logical and right decision to move in next door to our partner Airbus Defence and Space," said CEO of MT Aerospace, Hans J. Steininger. "In addition to the improved logistics for the production of the upper-stage tank for the Ariane 5ME, the German industrial sector is clearly showing that we are all pulling in the same direction when it comes to upholding independent European access to space."
Among the guests were the federal government's coordinator for German aerospace, Parliamentary State Secretary Brigitte Zypries MdB, and the Mayor of the Hanseatic City of Bremen, Jens Böhrnsen.
"The two new high-tech aerospace production sites underscore Bremen's importance as an industrial competence centre for rocket upper-stages in Europe, and they secure qualified jobs in the region. Together we will continue to provide the framework conditions that make Bremen a crucial component in Europe's independent access to space," Böhrnsen said.
MT Aerospace was commissioned with developing and qualifying the metallic fuel tanks for the new ARIANE 5 ME upper stage by the prime contractor of the ARIANE 5 ME programme, Airbus Defence and Space, and by the European Space Agency ESA. The new orders, with a total volume of €62.8 million, also include the required production sites.
Key requirements of a future ARIANE 6 upper stage have already been taken into account in the design of the plants, and in the development phase, great importance is attached to ensuring that it has as many things in common with the A5 ME as possible.
View the progress on the construction site at:
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