In-Orbit Manufacturing (IOM) Maturation Research & Development Projects

Buyer
Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
Value
£1,400,000
Closes
27 November 2026
Where
London
Type
Open tender

In plain English

The UK Space Agency is funding roughly two research and development projects to develop a way of manufacturing products in orbit, in space, with the total estimated value at £1.4 million. The work aims to take the process and its equipment (payload) from early development to a tested prototype stage, called Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 4/5, which measures how mature a technology is, and to plan a route to a space demonstration by 2030.

What the buyer wants

• Design, prototype, analyse and test the in-orbit manufacturing process and its payload, reaching TRL 4/5 by the Final Review milestone and producing evidence against indicators such as quality, performance and quantity. • Develop and compare credible routes to a future microgravity demonstration, identifying what must be developed to reach demonstration by 2030. • Build the commercial case and strategic relevance of the proposed capability, including its relevance to identified customer and end-user needs, to inform future UK Space Agency investment and procurement decisions.

Requirements

What could rule a small business out (our reading of the notice, written with AI): The notice describes specialist space research, prototyping and testing work to TRL 4/5, which most small businesses without an existing space or advanced engineering research capability are unlikely to be able to deliver, and the eligibility criteria are not set out in the text provided, so the full tender documents would need checking.

Always check the tender documents.

How to bid

This is an open tender: any eligible business can respond directly to the buyer by the deadline, with no framework membership needed.

Where to apply

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Questions about this tender? The official notice gives the buyer's contact.

How to write a tender response

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