The CEO of Fire Point’s subsidiary spoke about the technology for producing rocket engines at a plant in Denmark
Kyiv • UNN
In Denmark, Fire Point is building a plant for solid-fuel rocket engines. The casings will be wound from polycarbonate fiber
The Ukrainian defense technology company Fire Point is building a plant in Denmark to manufacture solid rocket-fuel engines. Vyacheslav Bondarchuk, CEO of Rocket Technology, a subsidiary of Fire Point, briefly explained to UNN how the technological process of manufacturing the engine will take place.
"The casing is wound from polycarbonate fiber—essentially, it is a tube. The technology is similar to manufacturing tennis rackets and expensive skis. In other words, it involves thin polycarbonate fiber and the high-quality application of a heat-protective coating. This will take place in one of the plant’s workshops. The solid fuel is then poured into it, after which the entire assembly is placed in a special oven for 10 days, where it polymerizes. After that, the nozzles can be attached, and once the nozzles and navigation system are in place, it is already a rocket," Bondarchuk explained.
According to Bondarchuk, many safety and environmental considerations had to be taken into account before construction of the plant could begin.
"The walls are 90 centimeters thick, and there are many different measures designed to protect against any incident, whether internal—someone doing something carelessly—or external, such as a Russian attack," Bondarchuk said.
Considerable attention was also devoted to handling production waste, including remnants of rocket fuel. According to Bondarchuk, a process was developed whereby the fuel decomposes into safe fractions. Subsequently, two-thirds of the remnants are reused in the production process, while one-third is safely disposed of. Other environmental aspects were also taken into account, including the possible impact of the construction process on the population of rare worms found in the area. To reduce the negative impact, the company abandoned pile driving for the foundation.
We remind you
As UNN reported, Fire Point’s solid rocket-fuel plant is being built in the Danish town of Vojens, in the south of the country. The site will be used to cast FP-7 and FP-7.x rockets and boosters for Flamingo. This is the first case within NATO in which a member state has allowed a Ukrainian defense company to establish a production site on its territory.
As Fire Point’s CEO and CTO Iryna Terekh reported, the plant’s total area will exceed 120,000 square meters, with a capacity ranging from 800 to more than 4,100 rockets per year, depending on requirements. The construction process necessitated a review of regulatory standards and expertise related to the construction of facilities of this scale. In addition, the Danish authorities eliminated more than 20 legislative barriers overall.
During the war in Ukraine, the plant will operate to meet the needs of our Defense Forces; subsequently, the fuel is planned to be supplied to European partners as well.
Photos from the construction site: Andrii Khodkov, UNN photographer