New 'Nanominiature' interconnections deliver up to 90% in weight savings

Tekdata managing director Ernie Edwards said: “We have dramatically improved our capabilities over the past few years and can now provide highly reliable solutions for every cabling need, from high volumes to a complex one-off assembly. Advances in 'nanominiature' technology allow us to meet the ever-increasing needs and complex requirements of our clients”.

These cable assemblies – whose origins stem from innovative, space-age research conducted by Tekdata’s Cryoconnect division – feature high density, low mass, defence standard electronic packaging. They also meet rigorous standards while supporting electronic high-resolution imaging and high-sensitivity detection. Tekdata delivered space-qualified harnesses for the European Space Agency’s fourth cornerstone mission Herschel and Planck Space Observatories planned for 2007. These assemblies are important parts of the SPIRE (spectral and focal imaging receiver) and HFI (high frequency instrument) focal plane units currently being tested in preparation for these launches. Dual satellite launch will be in 2007 on the Ariane 5 ECA Launcher.

Thanks to its Cryoconnect division, Tekdata is one of an exclusive number of companies able to meet NASA's demanding specifications for space-borne interconnection systems. Cryoconnect can design, fast-prototype and manufacture exceptionally small cable assemblies for aerospace, defence and medical applications. It also supplies solutions for scientific research instruments used in leading institutes around the world, such as the University of Oxford, Caltech, ATC Royal Observatory, Rutherford and Appleton Laboratory (RAL) and National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO).