Company Overview - HPS High Performance Space Structure Systems

HPS Group

The HPS Group is an independent group of three well-established SME (Small and Medium Enterprise), located in Germany and Romania:

HPS GmbH, Munich, Germany (headquarter), founded in the year 2000
HPS S.R.L., Bucharest, Romania (daughter company to HPS GmbH), founded in 2016
HPtex GmbH, Münchberg, Germany (Joint Venture with Iprotex GmbH), founded in 2020.

In total, HPS Group forms a steadily growing work force of currently around 100 people.

The three companies are

key supplier

to a large variety of space missions, be it commercial, institutional or in the defence area. HPS products are used for the following applications:

Earth Observation
Telecommunication
Signal Intelligence
Navigation
Science
Human Space Flight
Moon and Planetary Exploration
Space Safety
Zero Debris & Sustainability

About us

Corporate Purpose

Our Corporate Purpose answers the question: WHY do we do this?

It is the higher purpose of our company that goes beyond profit orientation. Our goal is to create added value for the public, for all national, European and global citizens. It gives each of our employees added value for dedicating their valuable time to the company.

HPS has defined five Corporate Purposes, correlating to its main product groups.

Improving Communication

With our high-performance reflectors and antennas, we increase the quality and data rate of communication on between Earth and space, and with that on Earth.

Understanding Climate Change

With our large deployable reflector subsystems and many other products for Earth observation applications, we contribute to monitoring the atmosphere and the effects of climate change on flora, fauna and landscapes, such as polar ice and sea salinity. Recording the situation helps to understand the causes of climate change and can promote the development of measures to combat it.

Preventing Debris in Space

With our deployable dragsails, we prevent satellites from becoming space debris, because we bring it back to Earth much faster than without sails.

Excellent Science and Exploration

With many of our products for scientific and exploration missions, we contribute to our understanding of the universe and support humanity’s urge to explore where we come from and where we can go next. The fascination of human space flight to the moon and beyond is inspiring a huge number of global citizens and promotes peace through collaboration.

Increase Germany’s and Europe’s Resilience

We thrive wherever possible towards non-dependence of Europe by integrating European components and by developing own sovereign components and subsystems. Almost all our products are “dual-use” and we are proud to be part of various defence-initiatives.

About us

Portfolio

Our HPS Group offers to institutional, commercial and defence customers products within the domains of Antennas – Structures – Thermal Equipment – Deployable Assemblies at different integration-levels:

Turnkey Subsystems as Tier-1-Supplier

Complete units composed of complex, interdisciplinary elements with interfaces directly to the satellite/spacecraft-system; typical HPS-subsystems are:

Communication antennas
Large deployable reflector subsystems
Small deployable antennas
Deployable de-orbit dragsails

Subsystem Integrals as Tier-2-Supplier

Key- and/or cross-sectional technologies for many different space applications, even as small integrals for several functional requirements made by HPS are:

Thermal hardware (MLI, Radiators, Thermal Straps, etc.)
Secondary structures made of carbon fibre and/or metal
MGSE
Purge equipment

Subsystem elements as Lower-Tier-Supplier

HPS is developing and delivering single mechanical and thermal materials, parts and components for integration by the direct customer in his product. Examples are:

3D-printed / ALM parts
Mesh for deployable antennas
(Universal Space Mesh by HPtex)
Spacer net for MLI
CFRP-electronic housings
Radiation shielding caps
Re-entry- and launcher components

As specialists in areas mentioned above we also offer technology development studies, engineering services, research and development and product development, ranging from structural, thermal and vibro-acoustical analysis to antenna design and analysis.

Our competences include also hardware assembly, sample characterisation up to component qualification testing.

About us

Customers

Our Customer-landscape ranges from Space Agencies (DLR, ESA, EU), large system integrators (LSI), Midcap-industries, SME-companies to Universities and R&D-Institutes.

Agencies

Large System Integrators

Others

Agencies

Large System Integrators

Others

The HPS-group meanwhile participates with flight hardware in significant missions for Earth Observation, SatCom, Navigation, Human Space Flight, Science and Space Safety (order according launch date):

CIMR (Copernicus) Earth Observation Mission

Direct contract to satellite prime TAS-Rome, Italy – 8 m, Ka-band large deployable reflector subsystem (HPS-DE as LDRS-prime, together with our 15 subcontractors such as LSS, INVENT, NanoSpace, HPS-RO, HPtex, INEGI, FHP)

ADLER SatCom Bw3 Mission

Direct contract to the prime Airbus-Ottobrunn, Germany– HPS: Ka-band large solid reflectors

SAILOR/OPTIMIST Space Debris Registration Mission

Direct contract to satellite-prime C3S, Hungary – HPS: deployable membranes equipped with acoustic sensors

Cubesat Mission

By satellite prime ISISPACE, The Netherlands – HPS: deployable deorbit dragsail ADEO

MetImage Weather Mission

Direct customer to Optical Instrument Airbus-Friedrichshafen, Germany – HPS: Set of MGSE items

HERA Space Safety Asteroid Mission

Direct contract to satellite prime OHB-Bremen, Germany – HPS: X-band Antenna for data transfer from up to 400 mio. km away from Earth

SIGI Mission for signal intelligence

Direct contract to mission operator MBS Germany – HPS: broadband receive antenna assembly

Heinrich Hertz SatCom Satellite

Direct contract to satellite primes OHB and TESAT Germany – HPS: Ka-band antenna for communication and internet applications

EUCLID Science Satellite

Direct contract to communication prime TAS-Spain – HPS: Ka-band antenna reflector assembly for scientific data transfer to Earth

SENTINEL-4

Direct contract to telescope-prime prime OHB-Munich and instrument-prime Airbus-Ottobrunn, Germany – HPS: Radiators and MLI for the optical instrument

ExoMars 2016 Orbiter

Direct contracts to NOMAD instrument R&D-prime Belgian Institute for Space Astronomy and CASSIS-prime University of Bern, Switzerland – HPS: MLI equipment for two instruments onboard the orbiter

HPS Romania

Contracts directly to HPS Romania from Airbus (UK & FR) for BIOMASS-satellite (>> satellite vertical integration stand) and JUICE-satellite (>> satellite purge equipment), as well as by QinetiQ (Belgium) for ALTIUS satellite (>> Thermal Hardware)

The quality of HPS performances on this highest possible level in the space business has been testified by primes by awarding the title of „Preferred Supplier“ to HPS and official letters acknowledging flexibility and passion of the HPS teams working day and – if necessary – night to fulfil integration tasks directly at their flight hardware.

Science partners of HPS are among others the Technical University Munich (DE), University of Applied Sciences Munich (DE), Frauenhofer Institute (DE), Max-Planck Institute (DE), University Hof (DE), University Bern (CH), INEGI (PT).

About us

Memberships

We are grateful and proud to be members of four important and well-acknowledged associations dedicated to space activities.

Arbeitskreis Raumfahrt-KMU (AKRK)

German Space-SME Association with around 40 members and 2,500 employees, aiming for a strong contribution of SME to space missions.

BDI New Space Initiative

Association of more than 100 German companies, who are working in the NewSpace-domain, as system prime, supplier, operator or terrestrial user of space data.

Best of Space

Group of German companies with the aim to use synergies in common internet presence and joint stands on fairs.

Net Zero Initiative

Group of international companies, institutes and individuals promoting and implementing sustainability in space activities.

As one of the first international signatories, we are fully committed to the goals of the international Zero Debris Charter, which sets up guidelines for reducing space debris, and for dark and quiet skies.

About us

HPS Sites

In Germany, at the Munich Headquarters, “High Performance Space Structure Systems GmbH” (HPS-DE) concentrates on complete subsystems and assemblies such as solid antennas and reflectors, large deployable reflector subsystems, small deployable antennas, thermal hardware, complex secondary structure assemblies, mechatronics and large MGSE packages.

Our main office with laboratories and a medium size clean area.

Located almost in the center of Munich. It can easily be reached in just 10 min by metro from downtown (Marienplatz or main train station).

Our main large integration hall is located in the suburb Oberhaching, south of Munich, just 20 min. by car from the main office.

High Performance Structures Inovatie si Dezvoltare S.R.L.” (HPS-RO) is located almost in the center of Bucharest, Romania.

Partners of HPS-RO are renowned Romanian companies, institutions and universities of the special segments in mechanical precision manufacturing, welding technology, material- and construction-characterization, process verification as well as testing. The final assembly of HPS-RO’s products is performed in its two integration halls, just 5 min by foot from the office place.

HPtex GmbH is located in Münchberg (near Hof), Upper Franconia, Germany.

The core competence is the production and delivery of high-quality reflective metal mesh to customers all over the world. The main applications for the meshes are deployable antennas, nanosatellites as well as large Earth observation missions. Also, other technical textiles for various space applications are developed and produced. Adaptation to individual requirements of the customer is a service which is well acknowledged. HPtex works with several own customised knitting machines. In its assembly hall mesh stripes are automatically sewed together and packed with caution for its delivery to the customers.

Values & Culture

Our Competences

Our competences grown over more than 25 years answer to the needs for whole development cycles from the idea to the delivery of the product:

Project Office (management, schedule and progress controlling, quality/product assurance, system engineering)
Engineering (manyfold capacities in RF, mechanics, mechatronics, kinematics, thermal, materials & processes)
MAIT (manufacturing, assembly, integration and test)

The high-performance outputs of the HPS-group are solidly rooted on three foundations:

People

Healthy mix of senior & advanced experts and young talents in project management, system engineering, various engineering disciplines, MAIT and quality control.

Strong internal financial project and company controlling and administration capacities, an effective procurement office, an agile human resources management for hiring and individual topics.

Facilities & IT

Highly modern offices with space for creativity, quiet deep dive, small and large meetings and for social exchange during lunch breaks. Infrastructure for manufacturing, assembly, characterisation, functional testing, product integration, packing. This includes laboratories, clean rooms, measurement equipment, test chambers. Extreme computing capacities and software packages.

Network

A large network of European partner companies, suppliers, subcontractors for special developments, production of all kinds of parts and assemblies, for material-characterisation and subsystem-tests. Our sales staff are well-connected, our leaderships are consulted when industrial policies and space startegies are developed by politics and space agencies.