Reference News Network, October 2 report: According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post website on September 28, scientists participating in China's space program said that their space industry is quietly undergoing a manufacturing revolution that could bring significant changes, possibly enabling the efficient production of rockets and satellites as efficiently as cars.

The report stated that after structural reforms, China's state-owned space industry is adopting a manufacturing model called "assembly-driven" production, which draws inspiration from the lean and efficient production principles of the automotive industry.

This newly emerging model aims to mass-produce space systems. This model is not only fast but also stable in quality, lower in cost, and more flexible.

The report said that researchers said that, driven by new technologies, global space activities are expected to experience exponential growth, with annual payloads launched into orbit reaching 170,000 tons by 2045. Therefore, countries that master scalable space manufacturing will dominate the future.

Traditional space manufacturing follows a "push" model: components are produced based on forecasts and schedules, often leading to misalignment, delays, and inventory backlogs. The new "pull" model overturns this logic. The assembly department only "pulls" components from upstream suppliers when needed, and strictly according to the required quantity.

The report said that Toyota pioneered the pull production model in the mid-20th century in its famous Toyota Production System. Using tools such as "Kanban," each workstation only pulls parts from the previous step as needed, reducing waste, lowering inventory, and improving efficiency. This method became the foundation for lean and efficient manufacturing worldwide.

China's space industry now applies this zero-inventory, demand-driven logic to rockets and satellites, where each stage is triggered only when a demand signal is sent from the downstream stage. This results in a compact, responsive supply chain.

The report said that Wang Guoqing's team from China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation wrote in a paper published in the Journal of Mechanical Engineering in July this year: "This represents a systematic and disruptive transformation of the existing manufacturing model."

Wang Guoqing is the Chief Information Officer of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and an expert in aerospace manufacturing engineering.

For decades, spacecraft have mostly been handcrafted masterpieces, with each rocket or satellite being a uniquely crafted product. However, with the surge in demand for satellite constellations and reusable launch vehicles, traditional methods can no longer cope.

The report said that Wang Guoqing and his colleagues said that China's space program has evolved from "unique" to simultaneously balancing the development and production of several models—reliably mass-producing. They said that the world today is entering the "mass customization era" of high-frequency launch operations and large-scale internet constellation construction, requiring repeatable and flexible production.

China is not the only country doing so. Wang Guoqing's team wrote that SpaceX's Starlink project has already launched over 7,000 satellites, "demonstrating the astonishing power of industrial-scale space production."

However, unlike the United States, where one company dominates, China's approach is described as more reliant on network collaboration, coordinating national enterprises, research institutes, and private suppliers within the national strategy.

The report said that as China's space launches have accelerated in recent months, this reform is beginning to take effect. (Translated by Yang Xinpeng)

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7556441063741784611/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author. Please express your opinion below using the [Up/Down] buttons.