Skylark-1 — Pocket CubeSat Kit for Schools

A flight-grade 1U CubeSat kit a high-school class can build in a semester and launch on a shared rideshare for under €30k. Open hardware, open ground-station, and a curriculum that walks teenagers through the same process used by ESA.

complexity: hardtolerance: ultra precision

Skylark-1 — Pocket CubeSat Kit for Schools

Snapshot

Feasibility at a glance

PT localization

7/10

High

Most steps can be localised in Portugal.

Per unit

€2,400–€3,800 per kit

at 25-unit volume

Starter batch

25units

minimum viable run

To first batch

Bottom line

5-axis CNC out of 7075 — the dimensional tolerances are hard but well-documented.

Read full insight

Picked based on the localization score (7/10) plus the dominant process (cnc machining). For an early build at this batch size, this gives you the best balance of cost, risk, and speed of iteration.

What it does

4 capabilities

Wakes up after deployment and waits ten minutes before powering on.

Charges itself from the sun whenever the panels see daylight.

Takes Earth photos and broadcasts them on a frequency students can decode.

Logs orbit health so the class can debug their own design after launch.

How it's made

4 stations · build route

1
Mill the chassis
5-axis CNC out of 7075 — the dimensional tolerances are hard but well-documented.
2
Stuff the boards
Reflow oven for the SMT layers, hand-solder the connectors that astronauts can fix.
3
Vibe and bake
Two weeks at a partner test lab — vibe table, then thermal-vacuum chamber.
4
Integrate and seal
Final torque, kapton tape, and then the cube doesn't open again until orbit.

Mill the chassis

5-axis CNC out of 7075 — the dimensional tolerances are hard but well-documented.

Stuff the boards

Reflow oven for the SMT layers, hand-solder the connectors that astronauts can fix.

Vibe and bake

Two weeks at a partner test lab — vibe table, then thermal-vacuum chamber.

Integrate and seal

Final torque, kapton tape, and then the cube doesn't open again until orbit.

Risks to watch

3 identified · 1 blocking

1 high

2 medium

High

Single-source ICs become unobtainable

Modern designs almost always include one IC with ≥30 week lead times when demand spikes.

Mitigation — Pin the BOM to two qualified part numbers per critical line and place rolling forecast orders.

Medium

Firmware ships before it's stable

Hardware looks done, software is still landing fixes — early customers feel it.

Mitigation — Hold the launch ship-date on a single firmware-stability KPI, not on hardware readiness alone.

Medium

CE / FCC test fail on first attempt

Most first-time radios fail EMC; budget a re-spin.

Mitigation — Pre-scan in a partner anechoic chamber before the official lab visit.

Production timeline

20 weeks to first batch

wk 1wk 7

CNC machining

wk 1–2

Anodising

wk 3

PCB fabrication

wk 4

SMT pick-and-place

wk 5

Soldering

wk 6

Functional QA & batch sign-off

wk 7

wk 1wk 3wk 5wk 6wk 7

CNC machining

wk 1–2

Anodising

wk 3

wk 1–2 is the longest stretch — CNC machining takes 2 weeks of the 7 weeks on this build.

What goes into it

6 materials · 7 processes

Materials

7075-T6 aluminum (chassis)Triple-junction GaAs solar cellsLithium-ion 18650 cellsFR-4 high-Tg PCBPolyimide thermal blanketIndium-tin-oxide window

Processes

cnc_machininganodizingpcb_fabricationsmt_assemblysolderingfinal_assemblytesting_inspection

The plan

9 tasks · 30 weeks to first batch

Week 1

2 tasks

foundersmall effort

Lock the pilot scope to one variant

One material set, one feature set, one user persona. Anything else is roadmap, not pilot.

opssmall effort

Shortlist three vendors per critical step

Use GETMILK Match to pull a ranked list across the top three processes — cnc_machining, anodizing, pcb_fabrication. Send the same RFQ to all three; do not customise per vendor yet.

Weeks 2–3

2 tasks

engineeringmedium effort

Freeze the design for the first 10 units

Move the active CAD set to a tagged release; any change after the freeze gets logged in the change-board.

opsmedium effort

Place first-article orders with two of the three vendors

waits on Vendor shortlist signed off

Order one of each critical part at full spec. Do not buy 100 — buy 1, inspect, learn, then buy 100.

Weeks 4–7

2 tasks

engineeringlarge effort

Run the integration pilot

waits on First articles delivered

Ten complete units assembled in-house. Track yield, defect modes, and cycle time on a shared dashboard.

legalmedium effort

Kick off compliance + certification

Engage a notified body for the relevant standards. Booking a slot now beats discovering a 12-week wait later.

Weeks 8–16

2 tasks

foundermedium effort

Put 25 units in the hands of lighthouse users

waits on Integration pilot complete

These users help refine the product, but they also become your first paid customers. Charge a symbolic price so the data is real.

foundersmall effort

Scale-readiness review with the chosen primary vendor

waits on Lighthouse trial telemetry

Before you tool up for 1000 units, walk the line together and agree on capacity, payment terms, and the failure-mode plan.

Ongoing

1 task

opssmall effort

Stand up a customer support loop

Every defect that reaches a user becomes a ticket, a root cause, a fix, and a regression test on the line.

Who you need

3 roles to fill before month one

EU electronics co-investment broker

Inova+

Knows the EIC funding gates intimately.

EMC test partner

ANACOM-listed test lab

Pre-scan saves you a re-spin on first official test.

Firmware contract studio

INESC TEC firmware group

Backstop for embedded headcount you can't yet hire.

Watch-outs

3 things to avoid in this plan

watch-out

Founder time leaks into vendor management instead of customer development

certification

Compliance booked too late and blocks shipping for 8+ weeks

quality

Demand exceeds the chosen vendor's small-batch capacity right when momentum matters

2 tasks in week 1

Lock the pilot scope to one variant

Open the plan

Shortlist

586 matched · 8 shown, ranked by coverage

Covers, left to right: CNC Machining · Anodizing · PCB Fabrication · SMT Assembly · Soldering · Final Assembly · Testing & Inspection

Manufacturer

Location

Covers

Certifications

People

Keenfinity EMS

Ovar

ISO 13485, EFQM

1100

Uartrónica

Aveiro

ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001, ISO 45001, IATF 16949, IPC-A-610, RoHS Compliance

—

Proto-Electronics

Braga

ISO 9001, RoHS Compliance

Exatronic

Aveiro, NUTS2 PT16

ISO 13485, ISO 27001

3DWays

Oeiras

—

REROM

Golpilheira TELEFONE

—

MOLDMAK

Oliveira de Azeméis

—

DIB4T

Marinha Grande TELEFONE

—

Registry coverage

Portuguese producers per required step

Final Assembly

369

CNC Machining

212

Testing & Inspection

178

SMT Assembly

Soldering

PCB Fabrication

Anodizing

Depth

How many cover more than one step

586cover at least one step

205cover two or more

21cover three or more

0cover all 7 steps

The gap

Picked based on the localization score (7/10) plus the dominant process (cnc machining). For an early build at this batch size, this gives you the best balance of cost, risk, and speed of iteration.

Send one RFQ to the top 4

Keenfinity EMS, Uartrónica, Proto-Electronics, Exatronic — same package, one click.

Request quotes