Filtronic Cerus32 lands multi-million pound LEO space contract

The deals involve a follow-on production order, for its Cerus32 module, and a payload development contract in the LEO space market, for the design and delivery of an E-band module.

Cerus32

Specifically, there is a follow-on production order contract, valued at £7.8m, for additional supply of Filtronic’s Cerus32 solid state power amplifier (“SSPA”) module (right).

It is the third and largest production order to date for the Cerus32 SSPA, the company confirmed to the London Stock Exchange.

The SSPA modules will be installed in ground station locations as part of the customer’s earth station antenna network which provides full E-band connectivity to the growing number of E-band enabled LEO satellites.

The Cerus32 SSPA uses Filtronic’s MMIC (monolithic microwave integrated circuit) chip design and proprietary power combining techniques for a small form factor amplifier module. It has scalable output powers, ranging from 4W to over 20W, at E-band frequencies, from 60 GHz to 90 GHz.

“Rapid deployment of modules in the field has enabled the customer to maintain a high-level of low latency network performance for a fast-growing subscriber base,” it said in the financial statement.

The deal represents Filtronic’s largest order win to date.

E-band modules

The second contract, with the same customer, is a development agreement for the design and prototype delivery of an E-band module. This will form part of the satellite payload and provide downlink connectivity to the E-band ground station from orbit.

“Subject to successful qualification testing and field trials this module will represent the first Filtronic product designed for space flight and is key part of our strategy to address the satellite element of the LEO space market,” said the company.

The value of the second contract hasn’t been specified.

“We are very pleased to continue our partnership with the leading global provider of LEO satellite broadband services, and proud of the way we have scaled our operations to supply production volumes of the Cerus32 SSPA module for their ground station network,” said Filtronic’s Chief Executive Officer, Richard Gibbs.

“The fact that the customer has also decided to fund Filtronic for their second-generation payload solution, due to be launched later this year, is a further testament to our credibility and expertise in RF design, and our ability to bring complex RF products to market for an aggressive launch schedule”.

Filtronic is head-quartered in Sedgefield, County Durham, with further offices in Leeds and Manchester. The latter was opened to focus on developing mmWave technology for satellite communications.

Images: Filtronic

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