Belgian company helping to facilitate Internet access
In twenty years, EHP (Euro Heat Pipes), a Belgian company based in Nivelles, has become one of the world leaders in the production of satellite thermal regulation systems or heat pipes.
It was therefore chosen to mass-produce these heat pipes, i.e. heat-conducting hermetic tubes that are so useful for the OneWeb constellation of some 600 communications satellites. These satellites will enable 5G to provide high-speed internet access in areas without land links.
EHP originally produced robotic arms for the electric thrusters of satellites. But since all spacecraft have the major problem of cooling electronic equipment, which cannot be achieved by insulation alone, the company has become so interested in this promising niche that in just a few years it has become a world-renowned specialist in heat pipes. These machines transfer the excess heat between a hot and a cold zone thanks to a technology that essentially uses ammonia.
EHP has already won a number of high-profile contracts in the past, including for the European Automated Transport Vehicle (ATV), a European Space Agency (ESA) cargo spacecraft to supply the International Space Station (ISS), and the ESA's Juice (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) space probe, which will be launched in 2022 to explore the icy moons of Jupiter.