Aiming indigenous engines for space missions: ISRO

BENGALURU: Aiming for indigenous engines for India's space missions, ISRO chairman Dr K Radhakrishnan today laid the foundation stone for Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing (ICEM) facility here.

The facility is being set up over a built-up area of 5560 sqm opposite to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's (HAL) Aerospace Division and will be manned by HAL.

"Our plan is to establish the ICEM facility in next two years and we are proud to come out with a strategy on indigenous engines for our space missions in future," HAL Chairman R K Tyagi said.

The major facilities planned at this upcoming ICEM unit include rotary vacuum brazing facility, machineries for sheet metal forming, CNC machines (mainly 5 axis) for complex geometry machining, tungsten inert gas/metal inert gas welding, the heat treatment facilities for special materials and testing facilities.

The new facility is expected to have a turnover of nearly Rs 9 crores per year.

Speaking on the occasion, Radhakrishnan said, "We remember HAL every time we succeed in our missions, the Mars Orbiter Mission being the latest. We have been partners in progress and will continue to be so in future too".

Tyagi said both the ISRO and HAL we will work to ensure that the make-in-India efforts succeed in the space sector.