Soyuz launch pad and ground infrastructure

On the strength of the experience of having built the Ariane 5 launcher kits, VINCI Construction Grands Projets was commissioned by the European Space Agency to build a launch preparation zone and a launch centre for Soyuz rockets. This project was part of the Soyuz at the Guiana Space Centre program and involved designing, executing and leading the construction of a preparation zone, launch pad and launch centre for Soyuz rockets.

background

In 1962, after Algeria’s independence and the Evian agreements, the Centre national d’études spatiales was forced to leave the Hammaguir launch site. So, 14 other sites were studied to establish a new base. Their special feature was that they were located near the Equator to offer optimal conditions to launch spacecraft. Guiana was chosen for the many advantages it offered. It is easier to manage risks on this sparsely populated territory facing the Atlantic Ocean in case there is a problem with the launcher. The seafront also allows for polar orbit satellites to be launched under optimal conditions. In addition, the zone is not earthquake or cyclone-prone. Finally, Guiana, as an integral French territory, also had the advantage of political stability. That is why, in 2002, following a Franco-Russian agreement, the European Space Agency Council decided to open this Russian Soyuz launcher spaceport here.

TECHNical overview

The complex is divided into three separate zones. The first is a service area consisting of the necessary equipment to send the launcher into space (power plant, hot and cold water production plant for air-conditioning, charging area for launcher batteries). It also includes a launch centre. Different parts of the launcher are made in this building. They are also assembled in the same zone. Finally, the actual launch zone is in the launch centre and it consists of a launch table, blast deflector and a mobile gantry where the launcher is placed in vertical position and the upper composite was installed using an overhead crane.
The structure was designed to protect the launcher from vibrations and prevent flames from rising. The challenge was to find a solution to quickly evacuate the hot gas produced by the engines at liftoff as far away from the launcher as possible. This is why there is a 25,000 m3 concrete ring around the protection berms to contain the discharge of the 80/220 rocks making up the flame trench. But computer modelling revealed speeds that could reach 500 km/hr, which led the project management to opt for separated reinforced concrete slabs instead of the protection berm to prevent the rockfill from ripping. The high-resistance concrete deflector was a first for VINCI CSG. The concrete used for the cohesion of the rockfill ensured stability.

The Guiana space centre has created a total of 1,525 direct jobs as well as 7,500 indirect jobs, which represents 16% of the working population in Guiana and 30% of the total wage bill.

IMPACT

VINCI’s experience from previous projects in Guiana and the complementarity of the two Group entities involved in the project proved to be great assets in winning this contract. In fact, the Guianese company Nofrayane (VINCI Construction International Network) was already well entrenched locally and VINCI Construction Grands Projets was able to contribute its renowned know-how in implementing complex turnkey structures. Launching Soyuz from Guiana marks an important step in the strategic cooperation between Europe and Russia. This construction, spread out over 120 hectares, involved reproducing the famous Baikonur Cosmodrome on the Equator. This was one of the most important projects in Guiana, which confirms its status as a European spaceport with the development and qualification of a launch complex. The installation of the Soyuz launcher in Guiana is part of the ESA program, which stems from the European desire to possess a range of launchers consisting of the heavy Ariane 5 launcher, medium Soyuz ST launcher and the small VEGA launcher.

Project participants

Client
Agence Spatiale Européenne

Project management
Centre National d’Études Spatiales

Key figures

Implementation dates
November 2005 to November 2008

Concrete
30,000 m3

Metal framework
10,000 m2

Total floor surface
22,000 m2

Testimonial

«This is a sensitive project. The confidentiality of information and fears about industrial spying resulted in the Russian partners providing their technical characteristics in trickles. The group sometimes had to resolve problems for which it did not have all the facts.»

GÉRARD SUINOT, PROJECT DIRECT OF THE INFRASOYUZ GROUP

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