Space Forge launches Swansea research hub

A Welsh space technology company has completed a £13 million research centre to anchor its in-space manufacturing ambitions.

Space Forge has unveiled the National Microgravity Research Centre at Swansea University’s Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials, marking the final milestone of a project part-funded by the UK Space Agency through its Space Clusters Infrastructure Fund.

The facility provides Space Forge with a dedicated clean room incubation bay and access to advanced semiconductor processing and characterisation tools. 

It will act as the terrestrial base for the company’s hybrid manufacturing model, under which semiconductor seed wafers grown in low Earth orbit are returned to Earth for scaling and refinement.

The centre builds on a landmark year for the Cardiff-headquartered business, which launched ForgeStar-1 in June 2025, the first British-built in-space manufacturing satellite. 

By the end of the year, the satellite had successfully generated plasma in orbit, providing mission data to support future microgravity production.

Joshua Western, chief executive and co-founder of Space Forge, said: “When we secured this funding in 2023, we set out to build something that would advance microgravity materials and open doors for other space companies to do the same. 

“Being based at CISM gives us access to world-class semiconductor infrastructure and a community of researchers and talent that will help us move faster.”

Based within South Wales’ CSconnected semiconductor cluster, the new hub strengthens Wales’ role in the UK’s sovereign semiconductor supply chain as the global market moves towards a projected US$1 trillion by 2030.

Dr Paul Bate, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, added: “The completion of the National Microgravity Research Centre is another concrete example of what our Space Clusters Infrastructure Fund is designed to achieve – tangible, lasting infrastructure that strengthens the UK’s space economy and builds sovereign capability in strategically important technologies. 

“Space Forge has demonstrated real ambition, from launching the first British-built in-space manufacturing satellite to now establishing a world-class terrestrial facility at Swansea University. 

“This investment is helping to cement Wales and the wider UK as a serious player in the future of semiconductor manufacturing.”

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