EPI, a key contributor to UAE’s aerospace and defence industry, has announced that it has joined forces with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), to manufacture key components for its new satellite project MBZ-SAT. The six-month-long project will see EPI produce 147 machined parts for MBRSC in addition to carrying out surface treatment and inspection services.
Named after Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, MBZ-SAT will be the most advanced commercial satellite in the region in the field of high-resolution satellite imagery and is expected to be launched in 2023.
In 2018, EPI was involved with MBRSC in the industrialisation phase of machining metallic components for Emirates Mars Mission project.
Speaking on the occasion, Christian Ziehe, the CEO of EPI, said, “This alliance reinforces the value of leveraging local capabilities to shape an ecosystem dedicated to manufacturing space-related technology and systems. For EPI, it serves as a unique opportunity to grow the company’s expertise in the space manufacturing field, and further diversify our operations. We are proud to be entrusted once again with supporting the UAE’s wider space ambitions.”
Meanwhile, Amer AlGhafri, Senior Director of the Space Engineering Department and Project Manager of MBZ-SAT at MBRSC, added, “MBRSC’s strategic collaboration with local companies in the UAE, to manufacture and supply the components necessary for the development of MBZ-SAT, will help enhance the sustainability of the national space industry in the UAE. Our goal is to further strengthen the regional space sector by leveraging partnerships that will support the development of MBRSC’s commercial activity through the creation of innovative new space technologies.”
