Kellie said The Launch Company has no plans to build rockets. “We want to support the companies that are building rockets by transforming the way they launch. We also build hardware such as ground support equipment for these companies as well as quick disconnect fueling fittings for rockets and spacecraft,” he said. The company’s vision is to create multi-user launch sites. There is a limited number of “on-ramps” to space in the form of available launch pads and active spaceports, said Kellie. “As the launch industry grows, it will be a major competitive advantage for launch vehicles to be compatible with our multi-user launch system.” Customers could lease time on launch pads as needed, which would save them money and prevent them from “re-inventing the wheel trying to launch,” said Kellie. “The same way that airlines do not build airports, we believe that by building leasable launch pads and autonomous launch equipment, we can lower the cost of access to space and help more of those 100 teams building rockets get to orbit.”
In von der Dunk’s view, Luxembourg and the UAE are two of the best examples of countries that have figured out how to fill open niches in the new space economy. Both countries have made extremely aggressive moves to position themselves as beacons for the telecom industry and attract businesses from all over the world.
One of the largest satellite communication companies in the world, SES, is partly located in Luxembourg, and the country finally founded a space agency in September 2018 to promote commercial activities and ink partnerships with other companies. The UAE, meanwhile, is the dominant space power of the Middle East. Rather than developing its own launch capabilities, it has elected to use commercial partners to send up its payloads from spaceports abroad, and focus instead on satellite development. The agency launched KhalifaSat, the first satellite built entirely by the UAE (without international assistance), late last year, and launched its first astronaut into space this past September. It plans to launch a robotic scientific mission to Mars next year. And it’s already invested half a billion dollars in Virgin Galactic. “They want to become the technological hub of the Middle East, and space is a strong part of that,” says von der Dunk.
The decade of in-space infrastructure has arrived. We’re here to make sure you have all the access you need. It's NanoRacks words. As a Bezos recently said during the Blue MOon presentation, We building an infrastructure. After us will be everything else.
Owning and operating the next generation of low-cost, agile space stations. NanoRacks decided that owning space station will be something necessary and possible. Need to evaluate your idea.
“We are trying to build a unique ecosystem of space companies and projects that will bring revolutionary changes to the whole space industry. We believe that D-Orbit’s approach will disrupt the market in its segment, while our other companies will do the same in their specific niches. So that in synergy we will make New Space not just a movement, but a new order,” commented Max Polyakov, Managing Partner of Noosphere Ventures.
Partnerships: One of the fastest ways to get noticed is to ride the “coattails” of someone already successful in the market. Existing friendships and business relationships is a good start and can be a valuable resource for introductions and referrals. Another idea would be to partner with a company that has synergy with your product or service. In my past, I have successfully introduced two suppliers to one another that have been able to offer an assembly operation of their two products to the customer, thus alleviating the need for the customer's assembly operation and ultimately saving the customer money.
[AR]: Find really good partners. It’s very hard for companies that are FreeFlight size to sell directly to a government contractor or Department of Defense (DOD) contract. But finding the people who are going to be installing into an aircraft or providing support into the aircraft — those are the people who are going to win the contract for you because it comes full circle. You go from selling a product to the government to providing a solution and a service, which completes the whole picture for them.
So, for example, we sell very high-level certified avionics products and there’s a lot of certifications and drawings and things that go along with that. We have found a lot of partners within the industry to provide those installations and certification efforts. When a customer comes to us and says “we have a 747 with this type of equipment on board,” we are experts in what the solution is to make their aircraft fly better and meet compliance. And I think that’s where we have really been able to be successful – putting people together to solve the problem.
There’s no secret sauce. It’s about being responsive, patient, and just being kind at the end of the day.