Panel, Tubes, Struts, and I-Beams

Overview Structural Systems, located in Beltsville, Maryland, provides full and complete composites capability from design definition through applications: Requirements definition Detailed design and analysis Development Fabrication Integration and testing Quality control Program Management

Structures to meet customer-specific needs can include:

• Solar panels — Kevlar-epoxy/honeycomb, graphite-epoxy/honeycomb
• Equipment panels — Al H/C with embedded Al heat pipes
• Tubes and struts — Graphite epoxy, integral end fittings
• Structural brackets — Kevlar epoxy, graphite epoxy
• Structural composite panels — Graphite-epoxy/honeycomb
• Composite fittings — Customized as required
• Curved panels — Customized for structural, solar, or thermal applications
• Composite assemblies — utilizing above elements
• Deployable Radiators
• Composite HP Panels

Specifications

Part Types:

• Tubular Struts — round, square, rectangular
• Fittings
• Struts with Integral End Fittings or Metal End Fittings
• Parabolic Reflectors
• Momentum Wheel Housings
• Low CTE Structures — baffles, tubular assemblies
• Stiffeners — hat sections, C-sections, I-beams

Materials:

• Virtually all commercially available
• Fibers — pitch/pan carbon, aramid, glass, adhesives, prepregs
• Thermosplastic Resins
• Honeycomb Core — aramid, aluminum
• Aluminum Skin
• Other Metallic Components

Experience

With over 15 years experience designing and manufacturing composite flight hardware for a variety of government, military, and commercial spacecraft customers:

• Hughes Space and Communications
• Lockheed-Martin
• Kodak
• TRW
• GE-Astro
• Ball Aerospace
• NASA
• Allied Signal
• Rockwell
• McDonnell-Douglas
• Boeing
• Matra Marconi
• NRL
• NEC
• Johns Hopkins — APL

Some specific products include:

• Solar panels, structural panels, tubes, yokes, and brackets for virtually
  every Hughes "601" spacecraft flown since 1992
• Spin stabilized satellite solar panels (HS376W), stiffeners, tubes
• Optical shells, baffles, tubular assemblies, K-band tower for various military satellite applications
• Solar panels for Iridium program
• Military satellite adapter assembly, structural panels, tubes
• Composite electronic box covers
• Momentum wheels

Facilities

35,000 sq. ft. composite manufacturing area
Environmentally controlled Layup Room
Environmentally controlled Panel Assembly and Integration Area
Panel Machining Center
Environmentally Isolated Silicone Bonding Room
Bonded Storage Facilities
Production Test Lab

Manufacturing Equipment and Facilities:

8' x 19' Autoclave
14' x 16' Curing Oven
17' x 27' Curing Oven
12' x 25' Paint Booth
8' x 10' Air Knife Reticulator
12' x 12' KOMO CNC Router Fully equipped Machine Shop with CNC Mills Test Lab

Contact

space@atk.com