{"start":0,"take":1,"total":1,"items":[{"activityNumber":"1000046561","budgetReference":"E/0918-01 - Resilience&Security","classified":false,"closingDate":"2026-10-15T13:00:00","extensionRequestDeadline":"2026-10-08T13:00:00","clarificationRequestDeadline":"2026-10-08T13:00:00","description":"Objective:To develop European suppliers for the manufacture of high strength (HS) and high modulus (HM) carbonfibres for use in space systems.Description:Carbon fibres are one of the main components used in the development of lightweight structures for spaceapplications, especially high-strength and high modulus carbon fibres. These types of carbon fibres providehigh strength/weight andhigh stiffness/weight ratio in composite structures, ensuring both mechanicalperformance and dimensional stability for composites.High performance composite materials are widelyused in ESA launch vehicles, as well as primary structures of spacecrafts (such as Sentinels or Galileo) or robotic exploration platforms. According to a market study, the demand for carbon fibres for polymercomposite materials for space applications in Europe between 2023 and 2032 is estimated at approximately450 t.High-performance carbon fibres qualified for space flight are currently sourced from outside Europe and/orlinked to non-EU IP and export regimes, representing a strategic dependency. There have been someprojects on the development of pilot lines for carbon fibre manufacturing, such as the EUCARBON (FP7)and Space Carbon (H2020) activities, but the developed manufacturing capabilities are still in their earlystages and without clear plans on industrialization and utilization of the products. There are some limitedmanufacturing plants in Europe, however most of them use precursors (raw materials) that are imported,which again leads to foreign dependence. There are currently no existing, readily available and qualifiedcarbon fibres with a fully sovereign supply chain in Europe.The activity will focus onthe mechanical characterization, processability and industrialization, and conformity with ESA qualification standards. Its objective is to strengthen the development of a robust and autonomous European supply chain. The scope of the work targets RD activities carried out with European companies striving to replicateor exceedthe performance of competing solutions originating from outside Europe.Therefore, the following, not exhaustive, tasks shall be executed:- Identification of a fully European supply chain (including precursors and prepregging) to be assessed for their material systems and processes compatibility with space applications. Preferably define a supply chain able to realize prepregs from HM fibers and a supply chain to realize HS fiber tow for filament winding.- A characterization of the identified material systems for space applications, both at fiber level and at laminatelevel. Laminate level characterization shall be performed on samples manufactured using processes thatare common in space industry. Preferably autoclave process of prepregs with high modulus fibers andfilament winding with high strength fiber system. Benchmark results against ESA-qualified, non-Europeanmaterial systems to identify performance gaps and qualification needs.- Manufacture breadboards of representative space structural components using the identified HM and HSmaterial systems and relative processes. In this phase of the project the involvement of already establishedEuropean space composite structures designers, manufacturers and test houses is highlyrecommended.- Develop a database based on the acquired results and provide recommendations for standardization, furtherdevelopment and potential qualification and industrialization paths including a preliminary budget and time estimate.- An overview of the steps needed towards industrialization of a product of high-quality, assessment of facilities wrt re-use/adapt vs build dedicated one, long-term commercial viability plan (including discussions with the end users, lessons learned from other industries or other countries should be incorporated in this plan, for example ways to reduce the energy needed in a production planned).","ecosrequired":true,"establishment":"ESTEC","firstPublicationDate":"2026-06-01T16:31:49","id":188553,"idEra":25179,"initiatingService":"TEC-MSP","ipmeasure":"N/A","isArchived":false,"isCancelled":false,"isReissued":false,"isToBeReissued":false,"issueQuarter":"262","lastUpdateTime":"2026-09-22T16:24:09","lastUpdateUser":"rhamill","openDate":"2026-09-02T18:05:31","priceRange":"> 500 KEURO","programmeReference":"Resilience&Security","tanumber":"1-13559","title":"DEVELOPMENT OF EUROPEAN SOURCED CARBON FIBERS FOR SPACE APPLICATION","directorate":null,"countries":[{"id":17}],"products":[{"id":249},{"id":598}],"technologies":[{"id":414},{"id":429},{"id":462}],"status":{"id":2},"tenderType":{"id":5},"isFavourite":false,"eraVersion":1,"stageNumber":null,"isNew":false,"isUpdated":false,"declarationOfCompliances":["With regard to the technical requirements of the ITT, the tender is","The technical proposal is free from any plagiarism. When use is made of material being quotations or citations from existing public literature, such use is clearly indicated and due reference indications (source and author) are provided.","With regard to the managerial requirements of the ITT, the tender is","With regard to the financial requirements of the ITT, the tender is","With regard to the Contract conditions of the ITT (please refer to the Draft Contract and to the Proposal Template, Section 6.1.), the tender is","With regard to the IPR requirements of the ITT (please refer to the Draft Contract and to the Proposal Template, Section 6.2), the tender is","With regard to the export/import requirements of the ITT (please refer to the Proposal Template, Section 6.4), the tender is  ","With regard to the Agency’s “Right to Audit” (see Part 2, section 2.2.8 of the ESA Tender Conditions), the tender is","With regard to the requirements in ESA’s Policy on the Prevention, Detection and Investigation of Fraud (special reference is made to paragraph 5.8), the tenderer is","With regard to the requirement that the “consortium structure” in esa-star mirrors the Proposed Project Team in the Cover Letter, the tender is","With regard to the validity period of 4 months from the date of tender submission with implicit extensions as per Article 27, paragraphs 3&4 of the Contracting Regulations, the tender is"],"keyAcceptanceFactors":["The Tenderer satisfies the qualification requirements established under Article 12. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Contracting Regulations. The Tenderer further certifies that it, and when applicable any of its subcontractors, does not fall under any of the exclusions laid down in the Contracting Regulations under Article 12, paragraphs 3 and 14.","The Tenderer confirms, on its behalf and on behalf of its Subcontractor(s), to be compliant with the requirements listed in the “Certification of free competition” (see section 2.2.3 of the ESA Tender Conditions).","The Tenderer confirms, on its behalf and on behalf of its Subcontractors, the acceptance of the conditions listed in the “Non commitment by the Agency” (seesection 2.2.12 of the ESA Tender Conditions ).","The Tenderer confirms, on its behalf and on behalf of its Subcontractors, to be compliant with the requirements listed in the “Certification of non-benefit” (see section 2.2.4 of the ESA Tender Conditions ).","The tender Cover Letter and the tender contain a binding price.","The tender contains a technical description."],"evaluationCriterias":[{"criterion":"Background and experience (general and related to the particular field concerned) of the company(ies) and staff, including adequacy of proposed facilities ","weightingFactor":"30%"},{"criterion":"Adequacy of planning, management and costing  for the execution of the work.","weightingFactor":"10%"},{"criterion":"Quality and suitability of proposed programme of work; adequacy of engineering approach.","weightingFactor":"20%"},{"criterion":"Compliance with administrative tender conditions and acceptance of Contract conditions.","weightingFactor":"20%"},{"criterion":"Understanding of the requirements and objectives and discussion of problem areas.","weightingFactor":"20%"}],"entities":[],"procurementProposal":null,"responsible":"Agnese Soverini","updateReason":"Tender Clarification has been published"}],"totalNew":0,"totalUpdated":0}