Dcubed

Dcubed is a Munich-based German space technology company founded in 2019, developing deployable space structures and in-orbit manufacturing systems — particularly focused on manufacturing large-format solar arrays directly in space using UV-cured photopolymer resin technology, enabling spacecraft to deploy far larger power-generating structures than could be packaged and launched as pre-built rigid or folded arrays.

The core innovation is the ARAQYS (Additive Resin Architecture for Quantified Yield in Space) system: a compact launch package containing liquid photopolymer resin within a precision fiber structure that, once on orbit, deploys and manufactures a rigid structural solar array by exposing the resin to the abundant UV radiation of the space environment — the sun's intense UV light (unfiltered by atmosphere in space) polymerizes the liquid resin into solid structural members at essentially zero energy cost to the spacecraft. ARAQYS is planned to demonstrate a 15-meter solar array generating 2 kW of electrical power in a Q1 2027 orbital mission, validating the manufacturing process at flight scale.

The problem ARAQYS solves is fundamental: large solar arrays must fit within launch vehicle fairing constraints (~5m diameter) despite needing to deploy 10-30m across to generate sufficient power for ambitious missions. Current solutions — roll-out solar arrays (ROSA/iROSA), Z-fold rigid panels, Flex/PRAM concepts — achieve impressive mass efficiency but face packaging and deployment mechanism complexity. Dcubed's approach: launch the raw material (resin + fiber frame) in a compact roll, then manufacture the finished structure in the destination environment. Mass efficiency is dramatically superior because liquid resin is denser than air-gapped folded panel structures and no complex spring-loaded deployment mechanisms are required.

Munich's space cluster provides essential ecosystem access: Airbus Defence and Space's Munich-Ottobrun facility (Ariane program hardware, satellite structures), ISAR Aerospace (orbital launch vehicle startup), OHB System (small satellite manufacturer), ESA BIC Bavaria incubation funding, and DLR's Munich/Oberpfaffenhofen campuses with space structures research laboratories. Dcubed competes with Redwire Space (US, roll-out solar arrays, Archinaut in-space fabrication), Made In Space/Redwire (fiber optic manufacturing in orbit), and ATK/Northrop Grumman ULTRAFLEX arrays for large deployable power generation aboard future spacecraft.