New Delhi:- Benchmark Space Systems, a Vermont-based developer of space propulsion products, has announced a US filing. The Securities and Exchange Commission raised $33.2 million in new funding.
Benchmark CEO Ryan McDevitt told TechCrunch that the Series B funding will be used to support large-scale manufacturing and shipping of more than 220 powertrains in the company's backlog.
“[Funding] was really good. How are we going to have the capital we need to fulfill these contracts?” he said. He added that the expansion has increased production volumes as well and will help attract new customers such as satellite manufacturers and owner-operators looking for a partner to match this track record.
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"As our customers build new factories and expand their production capacity from 10 units per year to 100 units per year, we need to do the same," he said.
Benchmark also just moved into his new 40,000-square-foot office, test, and manufacturing facility in Burlington, Vermont to further expand manufacturing capabilities. McDevitt said it's a significant improvement over the previous headquarters, which was 8,000 square feet and divided into three offices.
The news comes just weeks after the company announced it was cutting its 100-person workforce by about 15%. At the time, McDevitt told CNBC in a statement that the job cuts were due to the company "moving from an R&D to a production-oriented team."
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Benchmark designs and manufactures chemical, electric, and hybrid propulsion systems. It started with the development of a variety of low-toxicity chemical fuel systems, also called 'green', that can be safely handled in normal laboratory environments.
The six-year-old company began manufacturing electric and hybrid systems after acquiring electric propulsion technology from Alameda Applied Science last August. had taken over. The deal has already paid off: Benchmark announced in March that it had signed contracts for about 20 metal plasma engines, with the bulk of the initial order expected to be delivered later this year.
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The company has partnered with European startup The Exploration Company, which develops reusable orbital capsules, British space manufacturing startup Space Forge, orbital fueling startup Orbit Fab, and space transportation provider Spaceflight Inc., which was acquired by Firefly Aerospace. The new capital brings Benchmark's total funding to date to over $56 million. McDevitt said the company will disclose the investor's name in a future announcement.
The company has issued a full fund request of $33.2 Million. The money getting collected will be used for large-scale manufacturing and for shipping of the products.