KAI Completes One-Stop Satellite Development System, Builds Electromagnetic and Acoustic Testing Facilities

In-house capabilities from satellite development through environmental testing
Can produce more than 100 microsatellites annually
Cut development costs and time, target global markets

Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has expanded its satellite environmental testing facilities, completing an integrated system that enables the entire process, from design and manufacturing to assembly and testing, to be carried out at a single location.

Attendees, including KAI President Kim Jongchul, pose for a commemorative photo in front of an electromagnetic wave chamber at the Satellite Environmental Testing Facility Completion Ceremony held at KAI’s Space Center in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, on the 12th. KAI

KAI announced on October 12 that it had held a ceremony marking the completion of its satellite environmental testing facilities at its Space Center at its headquarters in Sacheon, Gyeongsangnam-do, with President Kim Jongchul and company employees in attendance.

The newly completed facilities are an electromagnetic chamber and an acoustic chamber. Construction was completed in August, and the facilities were built to allow KAI to conduct key environmental tests required during satellite development in-house.

The electromagnetic chamber is used to verify electromagnetic interference between satellite-mounted equipment and their resistance to it. The acoustic chamber reproduces the intense noise generated during satellite launches to verify the safety of satellite structures.

With this expansion, KAI can now carry out every stage of satellite development, from design and manufacturing to assembly and environmental testing, at a single location. The company expects this to reduce transportation burdens, development time, and costs associated with using external testing facilities.

Completed in 2020, the KAI Space Center can simultaneously produce six medium- to large-sized satellites and more than 20 microsatellites. It has Korea's largest private-sector satellite development infrastructure, with the capacity to produce more than 100 microsatellites annually.

KAI was accredited as a testing laboratory in the field of space environmental testing by the Korea Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (KOLAS) in 2023. In 2024, it built a 4-ton-class thermal vacuum chamber. With the addition of the electromagnetic and acoustic chambers, KAI now has a system capable of conducting environmental tests in-house on satellites ranging from microsatellites to medium- and large-sized satellites.

KAI also makes its testing facilities available to external companies. Since 2022, about 20 domestic companies have used KAI's facilities to conduct more than 100 environmental tests.

Over the past 30 years, KAI has participated in national satellite development projects, including those for the KOMPSAT series, geostationary multipurpose satellites, next-generation medium-sized satellites, and military reconnaissance satellites. Building on this integrated system, KAI plans to strengthen its satellite mass-production capabilities and meet demand for satellites at home and abroad.

A KAI official said, "With the completion of these satellite environmental testing facilities, we now have a one-stop integrated system that enables us to carry out every stage of satellite development independently. We will accelerate our entry into the global space market by building on our accumulated satellite development capabilities and infrastructure."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.