SpaceX's Reusable Falcon 9

SpaceX, contracted through NASA 's Commercial Resupply Services, is planned to launch its fifth cargo shipment mission to the International Space Station in early January (delayed until 6th of January from the 19th of December, on the Friday the launch was supposed to be). SpaceX, with a heavy dose of innovation, is increasingly gaining business through NASA contracts. Friday's mission will simultaneously act as a testing session for a new, unique launch rocket.  The company has been working on reusable launch vehicles - maybe not a completely new idea, but the SpaceX has actually been acting on it, with proper investment. 


Past Liftoff of Falcon 9
Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX's Falcon 9-R, which is third version of the Falcon rockets currently being developed and refined, is designed to be partially reusable. More specifically, the first-stage booster will be reusable after, for instance, cargo missions to the ISS. The Falcon 9-R, after delivery, would drop back down through the atmosphere and land aboard a landing pad on a recovery ship in the ocean - an undertaking that demands high precision. "While SpaceX has already demonstrated two successful soft water landings, executing a precision landing on an unanchored ocean platform is significantly more challenging," according to a SpaceX news release. If this important test of the reusable Falcon 9 rocket is successful (probability for success: 50%), a new standard for launch services will be set. If the recovery fails, critical data will be collected nonetheless, and the next test will potentially be more successful.



Innovative X-Wings on SpaceX's Falcon 9 - assistance to landing on platform
Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX Landing Platform
Credit: SpaceX

Reusability will offer several advantages, of which one is tremendous cost savings in the long-run. Thus, launch prices for NASA and private companies will experience declines. Parallel, demand for SpaceX's services will increase marginally with decreasing prices - Musk envisions launch price per pound to drop down to as low as $500 in the near future. Launch price for Falcon 9, with a capacity of some 13,150 kg into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO), is $61.2 million - at full capacity some $4,654 per pound.

This innovation gives SpaceX  a competitive advantage over competing private companies, such as Arianespace, a sizable European launch service provider. Besides lower prices, Elon Musk drives SpaceX to continually improve performance. According to the Motley Fool, "SpaceX's reusable rocket ship could cut the cost of satellite launches by 74% off what ULA charges the U.S. Government." ULA (United Launch Alliance), a partnership between Lockheed Martin and Boeing, could slowly lose market share if they do not start to come up with their own way to drive down prices of their launch offerings - the development of reusable launch vehicles should be a priority. Otherwise, ULA might not be able to effectively compete for much longer.

by Peter Steenhuis

Feel free to leave a comment!

Sources:
http://www.nasa.gov/press/2014/december/nasa-spacex-update-launch-of-resupply-mission-to-the-space-station/#.VIycNRyomFk
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/12/14/spacex-invents-an-x-wing-sort-of-introducing-falco.aspx
http://www.spacex.com/about/capabilities
http://www.spacex.com/news/2014/12/16/x-marks-spot-falcon-9-attempts-ocean-platform-landing

Made In Space: 3D-Printing the Future

Made In Space Logo
Credit: Made in Space, Inc.

Made In Space, Inc., an independently funded private California start-up, was founded in 2010 with a paramount goal: "enabling humanity's future in space." Working in collaboration with NASA, Made In Space has developed the Zero-G Printer, a 3D-printing device that is designed to operate in conditions of zero gravity, hence, in space. Being the first of its kind, the 3D-printer, that has been delivered to the International Space Station and produced its first part on the 24th of November, will revolutionize the way engineers handle maintenance on board the ISS. According to space.com, "a recent study by the space agency (NASA) found that about 30 percent of parts aboard the orbiting lab could be manufactured with a 3D-printer," but it could also build tiny satellites, or CubeSats, directly in the space station instead of building them on earth and launching them into the outer atmosphere, which is a tremendously expensive undertaking - costs, that now can be saved. With 3D-printing abilities, costs of supplying the space station with parts will potentially experience a substantial decrease, and so will overall risk that is faced at every launch and cargo shipment.

The Zero-G Printer
Credit: Made In Space, Inc.

Long-Term Sustainability?
The device offers fantastic, revolutionary features, but is Made In Space's business model sustainable in the long-term? The device was developed with the idea that it will be used on longer-term missions, for the exploration of space, for which, of course, it would be vital. However, how would Made In Space sustain it's innovative business in the near future? It cannot depend purely on the dreams to colonize the moon and mars - ventures that are amazing and awe-inspiring, but not any less risky for the company, especially in terms of time and product demand. Time: uncertainty over when in the future the device will be needed (two, ten, or twenty years form now?). Product demand: how many of these devices will be needed? It's hard to imagine that a great number will make their way into space - probable is that only a few devices will be necessary for individual missions. In other words, its not a model of strong repeatability.

Competition
Even though the 3D-printing industry is in its early stages, the market becomes increasingly saturated with developers and manufacturers of 3D-printers. Competition is strong: a quick search on Google will reveal the great availability of 3D-printers, 3D-scanners, cartridges, and design software, from established companies, such as Makerbot Industries and 3DSystems, Inc., that are highly focused on the end-consumer. These companies have a head-start, which creates a decent competitive advantage over Made In Space. The market need for 3D-printers that function in zero gravity is tremendously small, more than niche. Having the zero gravity feature for a printing device on the International Space Station makes clear sense, but the need for Made In Space's units after that is difficult to measure. This, I can imagine, is one of the greater challenges the company faces. How would the company successfully monetize a product which priced features are superfluous on earth?

Business apart from Space

Naturally, brand equity, or image, experiences a strong boost due to NASA's utilization of Made In Space's device on the International Space Station, which might drive a business' or individual's decision to make the investment and choose to purchase a 3D-printer from Made In Space; however, the company's printer will not stay unique for long since the European Space Agency, with industrial partners, is planning to launch its own to the ISS next year, as well. So what could Made In Space do to survive in the long-term? To not fall behind, there are several ways to increase competitiveness:

Core Growth

• monetize the connection with NASA and promote the successful application in space to stir interest of potential customers and grow market share 
• have consumers, commercial and private, completely understand the abilities of the device, including materials availability and ease of use
• deliver superior customer value and first-class customer service
• make pricing competitive, so consumers, whether these are businesses or individuals, will consider the device from Made In Space over others
• perhaps, offer the device for a lower than average price, and then generate revenues from additional contractual services, such as assistance in design, customization, maintenance, and so on
• the automotive industry, especially suppliers, local parts-retailers, and collision centers, offers great opportunities worth pursuing
• standardize the device to minimize its costs, but offer possibilities to customize the abilities of the machine to match specific customer needs

New Initiatives

• continue innovation and initiate additional cutting-edge projects, as the material recycler (fantastic project) and the food printer (revolutionizing if made possible)

Made In Space, Inc. is an innovative, extraordinary, cool and young company that has a great vision for the future - a vision, however, that is quite altruistic in its nature. A little selfishness, or a focus on the company's own sustainability in the long-term, would not hurt and might make it competitive on the earthly market. Great possibilities.

by Peter Steenhuis

Sources:
http://www.madeinspace.us/
http://www.space.com/27870-3d-printer-made-in-space-op-ed.html
http://www.space.com/27860-3d-printing-space-exploration.html?adbid=10152471492361466&adbpl=fb&adbpr=17610706465&cmpid=514630_20141126_36246777