INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Just like in almost every other industry, there been a rash of layoffs among newer space startups and companies amid the novel coronavirus
But Relativity Space has managed to avoid layoffs — and is even hiring, despite the global pandemic
Relativity CEO and founder Tim Ellis cites the company focus on large-scale 3D printing and its adoption of cloud-based tools and
technologies as big reasons why his startup hasn''t felt the pinch.
Because Relativity forthcoming launch vehicle is almost entirely made up
of 3D-printed parts, from the engines to the fuselage and everything in between, the company has been able to continue producing its
prototypes essentially uninterrupted
Relativity has been classified an essential business, as have most companies operating in anything related to aerospace or defense, but
Ellis said that they took steps very early to address the potential threat of COVID-19 and ensure the health and safety of their staff
As early as March 9, when the disease was really first starting to show up in the United States and before any formal restrictions or
shelter-in-place orders were in effect, Relativity was recommending that employees work from home where possible.
We&re able to do that,
partially because with our automated printing technology we were able to have very, very few people in the factory and still keep printers
running,& Ellis said in an interview
&We actually even have just one person now running several printers that are still actually printing — it literally a single person
operating, while a lot of the company has been able to make progress working from home for the last couple of weeks.
Being able to run an
entire production factory floor with just one person on-site is a tremendous competitive advantage in the current situation, and a way to
ensure you&re also respecting employee health and safety
Ellis added that the company has already been operating between multiple locations, including teams at Cape Canaveral, Florida, as well as
at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and at its headquarters in LA
Relativity also had a further distributed workforce with a few employees working remotely from locations across the U.S, and it focused
early on ensuring that its design and development processes could work without requiring everyone to be centrally based.
We&ve developed our
own custom software tools to just streamline those workflows, that really helped,& Ellis said
&Also, just being more of a cloud-enabled company, while still complying with ITAR and security protocols, has been really, really
advantageous as well.
In addition to their focus on in-house software and cloud-based tools, Ellis credits the timing of their most recent
round — a $140 million investment closed last October — as a reason they&re well-situated for enduring the COVID-19 crisis
He says that Relativity not only managed to avoid any layoffs, while sending out new offers, but they&re also still paying all employees,
including hourly workers, their full regular wage
All of this stems from a business model that in retrospect, seems prescient, but that Ellis says actually just has significant advantages in
today global business climate by virtue of chance
Still, he does believe that some of Relativity resilience thus far signals some of the biggest lasting changes that will result from the
coronavirus pandemic.
What it really going to change […] is the approach to global supply chain,& he said
&I think there going to be a big push to have more things made in America, and then less dependence on heavy globalization across supply
That one you thing we&ve always had with 3D printing — not only is it an automated technology, where we can have very few operators still
making progress even during times like like this and printing some of the first-stage structures of our rocket — but on the supply chain
side, just having simpler supply chains with fewer vendors and different types of manufacturing processes means it much less likely that
we&ll see very significant supplier and supply chain interruptions.
Meanwhile, while Ellis says that ultimately they can''t predict how the
coronavirus crisis will impact their overall schedule in terms of planned launch activities, which includes flying their first 3D-printed
vehicle in 2021, they anticipate being able to make plenty of progress through remote work and a production line that can easily comply with
social isolation guidelines
Partner facility shutdowns, including the rocket engine test stand at Stennis, will definitely have an impact, but Relativity resilience
could prove a model for manufacturing businesses of all stripes to emulate once this moment has passed.
