The Exploration Company acquires Thrustworks, bringing a specialist in additive manufacturing technologies into the company. TEC The team is pursuing a clear strategy: strengthening the supply chain, expanding the production of high-performance drive components, and focusing on new investments in North Rhine-Westphalia. This will create additional manufacturing capacity and new skilled jobs.
Thrustworks focuses on printed refractory metals, oxidation-resistant coatings, and high-precision drive components. The company is among the first suppliers in Europe to successfully commercialize a technology for printing and coating high-performance thrust chambers from the niobium alloy C103. This technology is suitable for both civil and defense applications, thus directly contributing to TEC's strategic goals.
TEC develops in-house products to support its own programs and operational requirements. The team already uses these products to fully control performance, quality, and technological differentiation. Now, the company is opening this technology to external customers, creating a new commercial opportunity. TEC is transforming internal expertise into a competitive advantage that generates growth and strengthens its innovation profile. Thrustworks supports this approach and provides the necessary level of vertical integration.
Hélène Huby, CEO and founder of The Exploration Company, says:
"With this merger, we are integrating a unique niobium printing capacity and a great team within TEC and scaling it up to serve European industry. We intend to offer our customers applications ranging from satellite thrusters to engines for defense purposes."
Expansion in North Rhine-Westphalia
Christopher Mihm, CEO of Thrustworks, and his co-founders Alexander Albrecht and Felix Thiel emphasize the importance of the step:
“Joining TEC is a crucial step for Thrustworks. Together, we will expand our activities in North Rhine-Westphalia and increase our additive manufacturing capabilities to strengthen Europe’s resilient space supply chain.”
The Exploration Company is a space company with the goal of building accessible, sustainable, and collaborative space logistics. Founded in 2021 by Hélène Huby, the company now employs around 400 people at several locations. In 2024, the startup completed a Series B financing round over 150 million euros.
