Last week (June 20), Ramon Space, which is supported by the Israel Space Agency, signed a strategic collaboration agreement with the electronics giant Foxconn. Foxconn is the world's largest manufacturer of electronic systems, and it manufactures, among other things, all the iPhones for Apple. Foxconn recognized the tremendous economic potential inherent in the New Space revolution and decided for the first time to manufacture electronic systems for use in outer space – and for this purpose they chose the Israeli startup Ramon Space.
"Foxconn is a huge international organization for the manufacture of electronic systems," explains Prof. Ran Ginosar, founder of Ramon Space. "The Chinese arm manufactures the iPhones for Apple, their Taiwanese arm is responsible for most of the world's cloud computing and much more; the company also has factories in the United States and Europe. It is one of the largest companies in the world in general, not only in the electronics market. And now they have decided to enter the space market, because they have recognized that it was a growing market with enormous potential. The initiative was theirs, and out of the whole world they have chosen only Ramon Space. This is a badge of honor – and a significant leap forward – for us and for the entire Israeli space industry."
From Jupiter's Ice Moons to Production Lines in Taiwan
Ramon Space (formerly Ramon Chips, named after the late Ilan Ramon) is an Israeli start-up company based in the Yokneam Industrial Zone and employs about seventy people. The company began as a chip manufacturer, and later moved on to sell complete computer systems (which contained both Ramon Space's chips and chips from other companies) that can cope with the cosmic and solar radiation of space.
In addition to the hundreds of commercial satellites that use Ramon Space's Israeli systems, the company has supplied the chips for missions such as the European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter, Israel's Beresheet spacecraft, the European orbiter, Exo Mars, and the Japanese Space Agency's Hayabusa2. In fact, the Israeli product that has reached the furthest in history is the processor made by Ramon Space, which is currently making its way to Jupiter's icy moons as part of the JUICE (Jupiter Ice) mission.
"There are three aspects to production," says Prof. Ginosar. "First there is the supply chain – the ability to get all the right components in the right places and at the right times. This is especially important in light of the problems that have occurred in supply chains in recent years. The second aspect is the manufacturing itself. In order to produce aviation systems in general, you need an AS9100 standard. This is the basis for boarding a Boeing or Airbus plane, for example, and in order to get on, you have to build meticulous and precise production lines, including clean rooms. And the third aspect is the testing capability, the stringent standards for every system that flies into space. Foxconn is currently building all of these capabilities in order to penetrate the space market – with the help of our knowledge and products."
“The challenge facing Ramon Space, as we need to prepare for serial and significant production, requires strategic cooperation”, adds Prof. Ginosar. “When I come as an Israeli start-up, and offer a product for a series of satellites, I am asked, ‘OK, that’s all well and good, but who manufactures all this? Who can guarantee me that I will meet a schedule with high-quality mass production?” But, when a giant like Foxconn stands behind me, bringing to the table all the financial capabilities and technical means to ensure fast, high-quality production, it puts us on the same level as the ‘big boys’. The new agreement will change the attitude of the global space industry towards us and will give us a huge advantage over our competitors. This is a strategic collaboration and is unlimited in time, with the aim of seeing the computerized systems of Israel’s Ramon Space with a considerable share of the New Space market”.
