Tata Elxsi partners with ISRO to develop crew recovery models for Gaganyaan Mission

Tata Elxsi has partnered with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) for the upcoming Gaganyaan Mission. The leading global engineering company has designed and developed the crew module recovery models (CMRM) for the recovery team training of the space mission.

ISRO's Gaganyaan project envisions a demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching the crew into a 400-kilometer orbit for a three-day mission and safely bringing them to Earth by landing in Indian sea waters. One of the key requirements of this project is the safe recovery of the crew, which must be carried out with minimum lapse of time.

This is where the crew recovery models come into use. For recovery team training, CMRMs designed and fabricated by Tata Elxsi simulated the mass, centre of gravity, outer dimensions, interfaces and externals of the actual crew module.

Tata Elxsi executed activities from developing the design configuration in accordance with the initial requirements provided by ISRO, to carrying out structural analysis for various load cases, material procurement and testing, fabrication, carrying out load tests, and transportation of the CMRM and the ground support fixture (GSF).

The project marked Tata Elxsi’s foray into the mechanical design for space, as this is the first time ISRO has outsourced the mechanical design and development work for a critical system to an external partner. Tata Elxsi has also emerged as the preferred partner for similar ISRO projects.

“Tata Elxsi has carried out the design and delivered hardware meeting highly challenging delivery schedule of six months, demonstrating the excellent program management skills. This has enabled timely commissioning recovery training exercise to meet Gaganyaan mission requirements. ISRO would definitely like to partner in future for different projects,'' said Dr. Umamaheshwaran, Director-HSFC, ISRO.

The company is amongst the world’s leading providers of design and technology services across industries including automotive, broadcast, communications, healthcare, and transportation.

On June 7, shares of Tata Elxsi settled 1.27 per cent higher at ₹7,696.50 apiece on the BSE.