Final Frontier Design

Final Frontier Design is a seed-stage startup company that builds and tests spacesuits.[1] The company's products both enable, and are enabled by, the more recent lower-cost access to space epitomized by NewSpace launch companies such as SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and XCOR Aerospace.[2]

Final Frontier Design
TypePrivate
IndustryAerospace
Founded2010
Headquarters
Brooklyn, NYC, NY
,
United States
Key people
Ted Southern (President) Nik Moiseev (Lead Designer)
Servicesspace suit design, space suit gloves
WebsiteFinal Frontier Design

FFD was awarded a Phase I SBIR in 2011 and developed pressure garment glove technology under this contract.

In July 2011, Final Frontier Design won third place in the 2011 NewSpace Business Plan Competition in Silicon Valley, sponsored by the Space Frontier Foundation.[1]

Extravehicular activity prototype glove

In December 2014, Final Frontier Design obtained an official Space Act Agreement with NASA.

Company

Final Frontier Design was founded in 2010 [3] by "artist and designer" Ted Southern, a former Eyebeam resident,[4] and his partner Nikolay Moiseev, "a Russian mechanical engineer," with the intent to "craft affordable yet highly capable spacesuits for a burgeoning commercial spaceflight industry."[5]

FFD Prime suit
FFD Second generation space suit

Intra-vehicular activity suit

Final Frontier is developing a low-cost commercial inside-the-spacecraft spacesuit called an Intra-Vehicular Activity suit (IVA) which can be pressurized in the event of an emergency, and is projecting to sell the suit at a price of about a fifth of the NASA cost for its existing line of IVA suits that cost around $250,000 each. With the suit weighing a bit under 15 pounds (6.8 kg)—versus 30 pounds with the NASA suit—could result in economically significant reduction in fuel costs for a flight with a number of astronauts.[6] Final Frontier Design is building its third-generation spacesuit, according to the NASA flight certification standards. Its improvements over the second-generation spacesuit include the ability to withstand greater operating pressure, a carbon fiber waist ring, a retractable helmet, and improved gloves and glove disconnects.[7] The pair took to Kickstarter in June 2012 to raise money for the design and construction of a prototype commercial space suit for intra-vehicular travel — meaning activities that take place inside a spacecraft. Final Frontier had raked in more than $27,000 in July 2012 from 386 backers, exceeding their $20,000 fundraising goal. The goal of the Kickstarter project is to prep a third-generation suit to present to NASA for flight certification by 2013.[8]

References
  1. Wall, Mike (4 Aug 2011). "Satellite Grappler Snags Top Space Business Prize". Business News Daily. Retrieved 12 Jun 2012.
  2. Foust, Jeff (2011-08-16). "The evolving ecosystem of NewSpace". The Space Review. Retrieved 2011-08-15. Since the term came into vogue about five years ago, supplanting the geekier “alt.space” moniker, it’s been most commonly associated with entrepreneurial ventures developing suborbital and orbital vehicles. ... While an exact, widely-accepted definition of NewSpace still eludes the space community, it’s increasingly clear that constraining the scope of NewSpace to vehicle developers is too limiting. ... SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, XCOR Aerospace, ... New companies are emerging that seek to develop technologies that can either enable or be enabled by low-cost access to space and thus can arguably be considered part of NewSpace. [Examples include] Altius Space Machines ... Masten Space Systems ... Innovative Space Propulsion Systems ... Celestial Circuits [and] Final Frontier Design. ... NewSpace ... is a way of doing business and NewSpace is an industry doing business in a new way. ... NewSpace is an industry that’s doing business for a purpose ... a NewSpace company is a company that is built, formed, operated by, funded by, or has as part of its business plan the opening of the space frontier, and making a profit while doing so ... It is the industrial engine that will power the movement towards a more fundamental goal of space settlement.
  3. Article in space.com about releasing in July 2010 Prime Suit of FFD
  4. "Ted Southern | eyebeam.org". eyebeam.org. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  5. Mosher, Dave (2012-07-09). "Inside Brooklyn's DIY Spacesuit Startup". Wired. Retrieved 2012-07-13.
  6. Rosenberg, Eli (2012-07-06). "Brooklyn spacesuit designers have high hopes". The Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
  7. http://www.space.com/16197-spaceflight-startup-fund-spacesuits.html
  8. Thomas, Gregory (2012-07-20). "Next-level spacesuits, brought to you by a Victoria's Secret designer and Russian engineer". The Washington Post.
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