Rosenberg Space Habitat Named “The Coolest Thing Made in Illinois”
With more than 300,000 votes cast throughout the eight-week competition, the Rosenberg Space Habitat was awarded the title of The Coolest Thing Made in Illinois by Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday March, 29 during a ceremony at the Governor’s Mansion in Springfield.
“Ingersoll is humbled by this recognition and proud to be in the company of these amazing manufacturing organizations. The Rosenberg Space Habitat is a current concept for humankinds first lunar colony and was printed on the large, Ingersoll MasterPrint® 3X platform. Our mission of advancing the possibilities of manufacturing and human exploration is a challenge we readily accept. Our 131-year history in Rockford demonstrates that the manufacturing challenges of today are the standards of tomorrow; Ingersoll will be there to meet those challenges and move American manufacturing forward. Thank you to our 200+ person team of machine tool professionals – you conceive, develop, and realize the challenging solutions manufacturers demand in space, air, land and sea. The future of Illinois manufacturing is bright and the possibilities for Illinois manufacturers even brighter."
Dr. Jeff Ahrstrom
CEO of Ingersoll Machine Tools
Manufactured at our facility in Rockford in collaboration with the Institut auf dem Rosenberg in Switzerland and SAGA Space Architects in Denmark, the habitat is a 3D-printed polymer structure produced using our MasterPrint® 3D printer and designed to support human life on the Moon.
Built to accommodate a crew of two, the habitat is the world’s tallest single-piece 3D-printed polymer structure, reaching 23 feet in height while maintaining a wall thickness of only 5 millimeters.
Thanks to MasterPrint®, which enables us to 3D print and mill extra-large composite components in a single system, we were able to explore a new design approach that would not have been possible with traditional manufacturing technologies. Each of the six panels, measuring 23 feet in height, required 14 hours of printing.
From concept to completion, we designed, built, and installed the lunar habitat in just 9 months.
Built to accommodate a crew of two, the habitat is the world’s tallest single-piece 3D-printed polymer structure, reaching 23 feet in height while maintaining a wall thickness of only 5 millimeters.
Thanks to MasterPrint®, which enables us to 3D print and mill extra-large composite components in a single system, we were able to explore a new design approach that would not have been possible with traditional manufacturing technologies. Each of the six panels, measuring 23 feet in height, required 14 hours of printing.
From concept to completion, we designed, built, and installed the lunar habitat in just 9 months.
