“Godrej Aerospace, which is one of the 10 industries of the conglomerate, has contributed to the development of Isro’s heaviest launcher, Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM-3). For this mission, the L110 engine for the core stage and the CE20 engine thrust chamber for the upper stage have been manufactured by Godrej Aerospace. We have also provided thrusters for the Chandrayaan-3 mission. We hope the Vikram lander will land this time on the Moon,”Godrej & Boyce CEO Anil G Verma told
TOI
.
Chandrayaan-3 mission will be launched from Sriharikota at 2.35 pm on Friday (July 14) and will be a follow-up mission after the crash-landing of the Vikram lander of Chandrayaan-2 in September 2019 due to a software glitch.
With a steadfast dedication to indigenous manufacturing for India’s space endeavours, Godrej Aerospace has contributed to all PSLV and GSLV launches in the country and has delivered over 175 engines and other critical equipment till date, the company said. “Our relations with Isro go back to 34 years. We can easily say that we have been working with the space agency since its inception,” Verma said.
“All the liquid engines and satellite thrusters have been manufactured by the company at its Mumbai facility at Vikhroli. They are all indigenous products and promote the government’s Make in India initiative,” Maneck Behramkamdin, assistant vice-president and business head, Godrej Aerospace, said.
Behramkamdin told
TOI
, “Not only the rocket engines, but the thrusters needed to propel the satellite towards the Moon’s orbit from the Earth’s orbit have been provided by Godrej Aerospace. I can say that even the thrusters used in the Vikram lander to help it in the descent on the lunar surface have been made in the Vikhroli facility.” The Vikhroli industrial complex is a green zone spread over acres of prime land in the Mumbai suburb where Godrej manufactures a variety of products in the areas of aviation, space, heavy engineering among others.
Godrej Aerospace also had made key contributions to Chandrayaan-1 and 2 and Mangalyaan space missions. The company will also make engines for the heavy-lift launcher for the Gaganyaan mission, India’s first human spaceflight mission,” the company’s business head disclosed.
“Our partnership with Isro spans a wide range of programmes, including remote sensing, tele-education and interplanetary missions. As Isro looks towards the future with the aim of greater private-sector participation in space, we see immense opportunities to demonstrate our technical and manufacturing expertise and drive self-reliance in this critical domain. We remain committed to supporting the Indian space program in the years to come,” Behramkamdin said.
Behramkamdin also informed that the company is investing Rs 250 crore to build a new facility at Khalapur in coastal Maharashtra’s Raigad district. This greenfield facility will have advanced manufacturing and assembly capabilities, enabling the company to enhance its technological prowess and meet the growing demands of the space sector, he added.
Recently, the company was awarded the contract to produce eight modules of the DRDO’s turbojet engine. The company’s expertise in precision engineering and high-quality manufacturing has earned it a reputation as a trusted partner for the Indian space program and other aerospace initiatives.