Canadian Industrial Team Completes Canada's New Space Robotic Arm

Brampton, Ontario - March 12, 1999 - The Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) was officially transferred to the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) today from its Canada-wide industrial team led by Spar Aerospace Limited. The ceremony was held at Spar in Brampton, Ontario, in the presence of the Honourable John Manley, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the CSA.

"The performance of the Space Shuttle CANADARM is a source of national pride and a clear evidence of Canada's leading expertise in space robotics," said Minister Manley. "This new robot for use on the International Space Station builds on that reputation, secures our leadership position in space robotics, and generates economic benefits such as the creation of hundreds of jobs well suited for the new knowledge-based economy," he added.

The SSRMS is bigger, more sophisticated and more versatile than the Space Shuttle robotic arm (CANADARM). Its operation is crucial to the assembly and maintenance of the world's largest technological endeavour ever undertaken: the International Space Station. The SSRMS will soon be dismantled and shipped to the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida where it will undergo numerous integration tests with the other elements of the International Space Station.

The SSRMS is one component of Canada's main contribution to the International Space Station, the Mobile Servicing System (MSS). Other elements are of the MSS are:

The Mobile Base - serves as a storage location and work platform for the SSRMS, SPDM and the astronauts

The Special Purpose Dextrous Manipulator (SPDM ) - a sophisticated dual-armed robot capable of handling the more delicate tasks which normally required astronauts to perform space walks; the Mobile Servicing System Operations Complex (MOC) - a state-of-the-art centre which includes a number of facilities playing a unique role in supporting Space Station mission planning and operations, as well as in training astronauts to use the SSRMS.

The industrial team responsible for developing the new robotic arm is led by Spar Aerospace Ltd (Brampton, Ontario). Spar's main sub-contractors are CAL Corporation (Ottawa, Ontario), MacDonald Dettwiler (Richmond, BC), SED Systems (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan), CAE Electronics Ltd (St. Laurent, Quebec), FRE Composites (St-André, Quebec) and IMP Group Ltd (Halifax, Nova Scotia). Several other sub-contractors across Canada were also involved in the development of the SSRMS.

"Our utmost congratulations go out to everyone who contributed to building this sophisticated space arm," added Minister Manley. "Canadians have a rendezvous with history next year as CSA astronaut Chris Hadfield performs Canada's first space walk to install the SSRMS on the International Space Station. They will then realize that the experts in this country, the men and women who designed and developed the arm, have really produced a technological marvel," he concluded.

The completion of the building of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System adds another milestone of excellence in the 10-year history of the Canadian Space Agency. Since its creation in 1989, the CSA has vigilantly pursued a mission committed to leading the development and application of space knowledge for the benefit of Canadians and humanity.