Warren— NASA’s first manned spaceship to Mars will be partially made in Michigan.
The government agency’s new Space Launch System — a rocket set to ferry humans to the red planet in the 2030s — relies on dozens of Michigan suppliers that build everything from steering to components covers for harnesses and cables. But the most vital contributor from the Great Lakes state has a history rooted in the automotive industry.
Warren-based Futuramic Tool & Engineering once made tooling that checked tolerances of body stampings for every single car in Ford Motor Co.’s lineup. But after the Dearborn automaker outsourced that work to Mexico about 15 years ago, the supplier was forced to diversify to the aerospace industry. It now makes tooling and hardware for the Mars-bound rocket.
Continue here to read full story on Detroit News.
