MDA contracted to support ISS’ robotic operations

MDA Corporation has received a CAD $190 million contract to continue support robotic operations on the International Space Station (ISS) from 2020 to 2024. The company has provided logistics and sustaining engineering services to the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and its international partners since the start of the ISS, which celebrates its 20 anniversary of continuous habitation by humans this year.

According to MDA, the contract provides for ongoing operations and maintenance of the Canadian contribution to the ISS, the Mobile Servicing System (MSS), which comprises Canadarm2, Dextre and the Mobile Base System (MBS). Areas of support include mission planning and real-time operations support, software engineering, systems engineering, hardware engineering, logistics engineering, program management, product assurance, and MSS Robotic Operations Training Support for astronauts and ground mission controllers. The contract includes the option for Canada to extend the term of the contract by up to four additional one-year periods under the same conditions.

“This contract further strengthens MDA’s global leadership in operational mission-critical space robotics, and will provide an opportunity to advance robotic system capabilities and techniques using the ISS as a proving ground for future human exploration,” said MDA CEO, Mike Greenley. “We value our role as prime contractor and partner to the Canadian Space Agency, and enjoy the opportunity to work closely with the ISS partners, in particular NASA and the ISS industrial team.”

In early April, the iconic company announced its return to Canadian ownership following the official closing of the sale by Maxar Technologies to a consortium led by Toronto-based investment firm Northern Private Capital (NPC). The NPC-led consortium acquired all of MDA’s operations across Canada and the UK in a transaction valued at CAD$1 billion.
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