Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C Lunar Lander, Odysseus. (Image courtesy Intuitive Machines, Nick Rios)
Rock West Composites provided multiple configurations of struts for incorporation into the lunar lander Odysseus.
SAN DIEGO—Rock West Composites (RWC) reported that it provided hardware to Intuitive Machines for incorporation into Intuitive’s Nova-C lunar lander, Odysseus, which launched in February. Intuitive Machines’ IM-1 Mission sent the company’s lander to the Moon as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative and Artemis campaign, according to a release from RWC.
Rock West Composites delivered multiple configurations of machined and tested struts that met challenging surface profile and straightness requirements for interior and exterior dimensions. The struts were integrated with bonded fittings and were pull-tested in-house at RWC prior to final integration at Intuitive Machines, RWC said in the release.
The struts included circular cross-section tubes with and without bonded titanium fittings, and rectangular tubes with a tooled surface on both the inside and outside face. They were primarily constructed of HM63/PMT-F6 unidirectional prepreg with 0.010-inch and tighter surface profile and straightness requirements, according to Rock West Composites.
The rectangular tubes were said to be especially challenging due to the tooled surface requirement on both the interior and exterior—with a tight surface profile requirement on both sides to allow for next-level assembly tolerances. The hardware was build-to-print, but Rock West Composites said it provided input on the final design for manufacturability and requirements compliance.
“We are honored to support our commercial customers in this race to the Moon and, ultimately, a sustained human presence there,” said Rock West Composites Space Segment Director Jeremy Senne, in the release. “Our precision composite components can give our customers the performance they need to succeed in this high-risk and clearly challenging business.”
Rock West Composites is an employee-owned, advanced composites company that develops, engineers, manufactures, and tests composite products for multiple industries. These industries include Space (bus structures, solar array panels and wings, strut assemblies, launch vehicle structures), aerospace and defense (radomes, aircraft, and weapon components) and commercial equipment (industrial, medical, energy, and sporting). The company is also reported to be one of the largest e-commerce suppliers of off-the-shelf carbon fiber tubes, plates, materials, and accessories.
Rock West Composites has locations in San Diego, California; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Baja California, Mexico.
A detailed view of the RWC strut assemblies. (Image courtesy Rock West Composites)
A group of strut assemblies from Rock West Composites. (Image courtesy Rock West Composites)