Benchmark Space Systems

Benchmark Space Systems designs and makes propulsion systems for spacecraft and in-space operations. The company is headquartered in Burlington, Vermont. It has a second center of excellence in Pleasanton, California. The site says the company can take a program from concept to delivery in under 12 months.

Chemical propulsion comes first. The high-test peroxide systems are described as flight-proven, high-thrust systems. The site says more than 150 chemical thrusters have been built. The ASCENT monopropellant systems were developed under Air Force Research Laboratory work. The site says orders are being taken now, with flight heritage expected in 2027.

Electric propulsion is the third product line. The site describes a compact metal plasma thruster with more than 30 units delivered or on order. The meta description for the site says the company has launched more than 15 missions.

The company has public news on several projects. It was selected by DARPA to run a feasibility study for lunar water resource mapping, under a program called LASSO. The site also reports a high-throughput ASCENT thruster hotfire at Edwards Air Force Base.

The Burlington site covers 39,000 square feet and has three thermal vacuum chambers, a vibration table, a chemistry lab and a blast test bunker. The Pleasanton site covers 10,000 square feet and has a thermal vacuum chamber, in-house machining and a hotfire test stand. The site describes this as a center for propulsion development.

Services span mission planning, engineering and analysis, assembly and integration, testing, launch site services and on-orbit support. The leadership team includes Wesley Grove as chief executive, Dr. Ryan McDevitt as co-founder and chief technology officer, Matt Shea as co-founder and chief product officer, and Brad Morrison as chief financial officer.

Visitors can contact the team through a form on the contact page. The site lists LinkedIn and X accounts. The Burlington address is 128 Lakeside Avenue, Building 21, Burlington, Vermont 05401.