Cedar Park aerospace company opens new rocket manufacturing facility
CEDAR PARK, Texas - Rocket Ranch, the main manufacturing site for Firefly Aerospace off of Hwy 183, is hard to miss. The site in Briggs, between Liberty Hill and Lampasas, has grown from a small engine test stand to a sprawling space-age complex.
A ceremony Wednesday was the official opening of an expansion project.
Firefly is building the new Antares 330 Rocket for Northrop Grumman. The new rocket is to be ready for launch in 2025.
"We're fast at Firefly. There's no question about it, we don't have a choice but to move fast," said Firefly CEO Bill Weber.
Classified as a medium-launch vehicle, the A330 Rocket will be used to launch satellites and deliver cargo to the International Space Station.
"We are on the cusp of really doing a game changer in our marketplace, to provide more capability to the U.S., to international and to the overall space industry," said Wendy Williams with Northrop Grumman.
The Rocket Ranch expansion includes new high-tech equipment that will form and assemble the rocket.
"We are definitely trailblazing new ground when it comes to this technology," said structural operations director Clair Hawkins.
As part of the expansion project, a larger engine thrust stand is being built to test Firefly's powerful new Miranda and Vira engines. A 100-foot structural test stand will also be completed in June.
That brings a total of six stands at Rocket Ranch.
"I was in the Army as a helicopter mechanic," said Firefly team member Cody Maessen. "I never imagined I would be doing something like this, but I'm happy that I am. A lot of those skill sets you would learn in the military. We have a lot of military individuals here. A lot of those skill sets transition easily to us. We have a Russ training program that can move people into what the expectations are for aerospace."
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In Cedar Park, Firefly has built its own mission control room. Later this year, people will be watching a trip to the moon.
Firefly's lunar lander, known as the Blue Ghost, is being assembled in Cedar Park. The project will deliver equipment NASA needs as part of a later manned mission to the moon.
"It's very exciting to finally see it come together," said Jana Spruce with Firefly. "We've got all the components there. It's starting to look like a lander. It's not just a PowerPoint picture and CAD models anymore. It is very exciting for the team."
Blue Ghost follows the Odysseus lander, built by a Houston company, that had a rough landing earlier in February. Project Engineer Will Coogan and others working on the moon mission say the lesson from the Odysseus mission is to be prepared for a system failure.
"There are no guarantees in space, but we are as prepared as we can be," Coogan said.
As Firefly expands its mission into space, company leaders say they will continue to provide more high-tech jobs in Central Texas.