ISRO Signs Contracts With 3 Vendors to Assemble 27 Satellites

The Indian Space Research Organisation has signed contracts with three vendors to outsource Spacecraft Assembly Integration and Testing (AIT) activities.

According to sources, vendors are expected to help ISRO assemble about 27 satellites over the next three years. As part of capacity-building activity, the UR Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) has taken up initiatives to promote participation of the Indian industry from spacecraft subsystems to spacecraft assembly, integration and testing, URSC said on its website.

In this context, it said, URSC-ISRO signed agreements yesterday to outsource of spacecraft assembly, integration and testing activities with multiple vendors - Alpha Technologies Private Limited, Bengaluru, and its consortium partners; Bharat Electronics Limited, Bengaluru, and Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Hyderabad.

URSC Director M Annadurai emphasised on the need for industry participation in satellite building activities, it said. Also, a technical presentation covering the scope of work, contract execution modality, was organised for the vendors.

Earlier this week, ISRO said it had successfully conducted a ground test of its high thrust version of the Vikas Engine that would improve the payload capability of the space agency's launch vehicles. The test for a duration of 195 seconds was conducted by scientists at the ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) in Mahendragiri in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, the Indian Space Research Organisation said in an update on its website.

The Vikas Engine is the workhorse liquid rocket engine used to power the second stage of the ISRO's trusted Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). It is also used in the second stage and also at the four strap on stages of Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle (GSLV) and in the twin engine core liquid stage (L110) of GSLV Mk-III. "[..] a high thrust version of Vikas Engine was successfully qualified through a ground test for a duration of 195 seconds at the IPRC," the space agency said.