[Nuriho 3rd Launch] From Engine to Launch Pad... The History of Korean Manufacturing Gave Birth to It

Over 300 Companies and 500 Personnel Participated in Nuriho Development
95% Localization Rate, 'Welding Masters' Step Forward

"It is the pride born from 70 years of Korean manufacturing history."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

This is the assessment of experts regarding the Korean space launch vehicle Nuriho, which successfully completed its third launch on the 25th afternoon. A space launch vehicle is a delicate item assembled from tens of thousands of precision parts. Even just the welding of the airframe requires ultra-precision technology for manufacturing and processing special materials, such as creating a large rocket body with a diameter of 3.5 meters from a thin 2.5mm alloy plate. This was an insurmountable challenge without the ‘welding gods’ nurtured through the world’s best shipbuilding industry. It is a ‘comprehensive work of art’ that cannot be produced without a solid manufacturing foundation. The success of Nuriho is evaluated not simply as the achievement of a single national research institute, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, but as a ‘victory of Korean manufacturing.’

In fact, the success of Nuriho was supported by the technology, workforce, and infrastructure of domestic companies. The launch was a collaborative product of large corporations such as Hanwha and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, which were responsible for launch operations, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises like S&H and Bitsro Nextech that supplied various components.

Hanwha Aerospace participated in this launch for the first time as a system integrator. While previously involved only in engine manufacturing, this time Hanwha Aerospace also took on launch preparation and mission control roles. Hanwha Aerospace was selected as the system integrator responsible for four additional Nuriho launches by 2027 in October last year. Going forward, they plan to place practical satellites into orbit through Nuriho launches.

Hanwha Aerospace also took charge of manufacturing the engines, the ‘heart of Nuriho.’ Nuriho is equipped with a total of six engines: four 75-ton liquid engines on the first stage, one 75-ton engine on the second stage, and one 7-ton engine on the third stage. Hanwha Aerospace is responsible for assembling and delivering these engines. They handle the production of engine parts such as turbo pumps and valves, as well as the assembly of the entire engine. S&H also participated in developing the turbo pump, a key engine component. Since 2013, S&H has been involved in the Korea Aerospace Research Institute’s Korean launch vehicle development project, domesticating key parts of the turbo pump, a core technology of liquid engines. The parts developed by S&H are installed in both the 75-ton and 7-ton engines of Nuriho.

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries was responsible for overall operational support of the launch pad system during Nuriho’s third launch. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries successfully built the launch pad system for ‘Naroho,’ Korea’s first space launch vehicle, in 2013. Based on this experience, they won the contract from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute in 2016 to build the ‘Korean launch pad system’ for Nuriho launches. Naroho was a two-stage launch vehicle with a total length of 33.5 meters and a weight of 140 tons. In contrast, Nuriho is a three-stage launch vehicle measuring 47.2 meters in length and weighing 200 tons. Because of this increase in size, the existing Naroho launch pad (Launch Pad 1) could not be used, so a new Nuriho launch pad system (Launch Pad 2) was constructed. The system construction took about four years and six months.

Hyundai Rotem was responsible for building the propulsion system test facility for Nuriho. This equipment tests the performance and combustion characteristics of the propulsion system throughout all stages of the launch vehicle’s firing process. Hyundai Rotem explained that instead of importing overseas technology, they succeeded in developing the facility purely with domestic technology in collaboration with partner companies. In addition, numerous small and medium-sized enterprises such as Bitsro Nextech, Hi-Lok Korea, and Inocom contributed technology for key components like valves and igniters.

Hi-Lok Korea participated in supplying valve components for Nuriho. This company, which possesses pipe fitting and valve technology required for liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, supplied ultra-precision pipe fittings and valves connected to Nuriho’s propulsion system. Bitsro Nextech’s technology was applied to the combustion chamber of the first-stage engine, which must withstand flames exceeding 3,000 degrees Celsius. Inocom manufactured Nuriho’s tanks using their expertise in compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicle fuel storage tanks and hydrogen storage tanks for fuel cell vehicles.

It is not all light and glory. During the second launch, a sensor failure, and during the third launch, a communication system failure caused turmoil, causing distress for the companies involved. This is because responsibility inquiries such as “Who made this?” follow. A Korea Aerospace Research Institute official said, “Since these products were made during the research and development phase, it can be considered a verification stage now. In such situations, when problems arise, people swarm like hornets, so companies are reluctant to step forward and claim ‘this is my work.’”