Relativity Space and DEEP Manufacturing commercialize large-scale WAAM expertise into industrial services

Relativity Space has formally established Horizon Manufacturing Technologies as a standalone business unit to commercialize its Stargate robotic wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) platform, originally developed for rocket production, into industrial services for aerospace, defense, energy, and maritime customers. The unit operates from a 120,000 sq. ft. facility called The Portal and is led by Quan Lac, who joined from Siemens Energy where he spent eight years building its additive manufacturing business. Separately, DEEP Manufacturing, the UK-based division of ocean technology company DEEP, accelerated the opening of its Houston, Texas facility to May 2026—a full year ahead of schedule—after receiving full Approval of Manufacture (AoM) from classification society DNV for WAAM-produced pressure vessels rated for human occupancy. DEEP Manufacturing's Houston site will operate four WAAM platforms producing carbon steel and nickel-based alloy components including Inconel 625, with single-arm build volumes up to 2.8 meters in diameter and 3.2 meters in height.

This dual move represents a significant step in the ongoing industrialization of wire-based metal additive manufacturing, a segment that has long been dominated by research projects and single-application internal tooling. Both Relativity Space and DEEP Manufacturing bring something rare to the market: certified, production-scale WAAM capability that has been proven in extreme environments—rocket flight and human-occupied subsea pressure vessels. Horizon's pitch targets the large-scale metal casting market, where lead times for complex components run months and supply chains are brittle, directly competing with traditional foundries and forging houses. DEEP Manufacturing's DNV certification places it among a handful of manufacturers globally—and the only one in Europe—holding that level of WAAM certification for pressure vessels, giving it a structural advantage in the energy and subsea sectors. The pattern here is the Chinese localization arc in reverse: Western pioneers who developed WAAM for their own internal needs are now exporting that hard-won capability as a service, mirroring how AML3D, Caracol, and ValCUN are scaling similar offerings.

For Relativity Space, this move is a pragmatic hedge: the Stargate platform was validated on Terran 1, but the company's pivot to Terran R reduced its internal need for large-scale WAAM. Spinning out Horizon allows Relativity to monetize that manufacturing infrastructure without diluting its launch vehicle focus. For buyers in energy and defense, the practical takeaway is that certified WAAM capacity is now available outside of internal rocket programs, with lead times measured in weeks rather than months. The key execution risk for Horizon is whether it can build a sales pipeline beyond Relativity's existing network—the $245,000–$337,000 compensation range for its Head of Business Development hire signals serious intent to close contracts with primes and operators.