Rocket Lab (Nasdaq: RKLB) closed 2024 with its best year yet.The company launched more rockets, signed more contracts, and expanded deeper into spacecraft and satellite production than ever before.It made real progress on Neutron, its next-generation reusable rocket while continuing to ramp up Electron launches.
On top of that, Rocket Lab introduced Flatellite, a new satellite platform designed for mass production on Earth and tailored for large constellations in defense and commercial markets.The company also played a bigger role in national security and commercial space.With new products, new customers, and growing momentum across launch and space systems powered in part by 3D printing, Rocket Lab is starting to look less like a small launch provider and more like a serious end-to-end space company.
In 2024, Rocket Lab made $436.2 million in revenue, a 78% jump from 2023.The last quarter alone brought in $132.4 million, up 121% compared to the same time last year.It was the company’s biggest revenue year ever.
While the company is still operating at a loss, with a net loss of $190.2 million for the year, it has continued to invest heavily in R&D, new spacecraft platforms, and infrastructure.The pace of launches also picked up, with 16 successful missions using its Electron rocket, making it the world’s second most frequently launched U.S.rocket.
What’s more, Rocket Lab’s use of 3D printing has been a key part of what’s driving its success.Electron rocket.Image courtesy of Rocket Lab.
The 3D Printed Engine Behind the Boom At the heart of Rocket Lab’s growth is Rutherford, the company’s flagship rocket engine that powers its Electron rocket.What makes it so special is that it is almost entirely 3D printed.Rutherford engine.
Image courtesy of Rocket Lab.Rocket Lab was one of the first companies to fly a 3D printed engine to orbit.As of the end of 2024, it had flown over 600 of these engines successfully, proving how reliable additive manufacturing (AM) has become for mission-critical aerospace components.
Moreover, since its maiden launch in 2017, Electron has become the leading small spacecraft launch vehicle, delivering over 200 spacecraft to orbit.In 2024, Electron was the second most frequently launched orbital rocket by companies operating in the U.S.The engines are built using electron beam melting (EBM) and other advanced 3D printing technologies.
Production takes place at Rocket Lab’s Long Beach, California facility, which houses dedicated in-house metal 3D printers and supports high-rate engine manufacturing.Every key part of Rutherford, from the thrust chamber to the turbo-pump, is 3D printed.This setup helps Rocket Lab move fast, lower costs, and tweak designs without major delays.
The company also partners with suppliers like Carpenter Technology for metal powders and uses industrial printers from EOS, Nikon SLM Solutions, and Renishaw to support production.Compared to larger space companies, part of Rocket Lab’s success comes from keeping things small, fast, and affordable, especially compared to bigger players like SpaceX.While SpaceX focuses on large rockets and shared payloads, Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is built for dedicated small satellite missions.
That means customers can control the timing and orbit of their launches without “hitching a ride.” At around $7.5 million per launch, Electron offers a more affordable path to orbit for research, national security, and commercial customers with smaller payloads, helping the company serve a growing niche in the space economy.Electron is recovered and Rutherford engines are in great shape after a quick trip to space and a perfect splashdown.Image courtesy of Rocket Lab.
Mass Printing for the Next-Gen Rocket While Electron handles smaller payloads, Rocket Lab is getting ready to launch Neutron, its much bigger, reusable rocket.And once again, 3D printing is at the core.The Archimedes engine, designed for Neutron, is also produced using AM.
In 2024, Rocket Lab pushed the Archimedes program forward with continuous test campaigns in Mississippi and began producing full-flight hardware.Thanks to performance tweaks and material upgrades, the company managed to shave more than 200 kilograms off the weight of each engine.The Archimedes engine, which powers Neutron, is also made using AM.
In 2024, Rocket Lab pushed the Archimedes program with a series of test campaigns in Mississippi and started producing full-scale flight hardware.By making design and material improvements, the company cut over 200 kilograms from the weight of each engine.Archimedes engine.
Image courtesy of Rocket Lab.Production for Archimedes is happening at the same Long Beach facility, which was expanded specifically to support this new engine.The site now serves as Rocket Lab’s Engine Development Center, focused on both scaling Rutherford and building out Archimedes.
These investments are part of a broader push to grow long-term revenue and expand Rocket Lab’s position in medium-lift missions, which could bring in larger contracts and boost profits over time.Rocket Lab’s CEO Peter Beck says Neutron is on track for its first launch in the second half of 2025.But the bigger news for the 3D printing world is that Archimedes and the rest of Neutron’s parts are being built with 3D printing in mind from the ground up.
The company even built a brand-new ocean platform named “Return On Investment” to support landing and reusability tests.A Factory in the Making Rocket Lab is building entire production lines around AM, combining 3D printing with automation, machining, and rapid assembly to create a fast, scalable workflow.In its Long Beach facility, the company produces engines, avionics, and spacecraft components.
And in New Zealand, Rocket Lab runs a massive R&D and composite manufacturing hub, including high-voltage battery systems, carbon composite tanks, and other launch vehicle structures, many of which are produced using 3D printing.This factory-driven model is key to Rocket Lab’s strategy of reducing production costs and improving gross margins over time.Beyond rockets, Rocket Lab is evolving into a full-service space company, launching satellites, building them, and managing their entire lifecycle in orbit.
Its new Flatellite platform, introduced in early 2025, is built for mass production and marks a shift toward operating its constellations—a move likely supported by 3D printing for many of its components.Rendering of Neutron rocket.Image courtesy of Rocket Lab.
Rocket Lab’s use of 3D printing has opened doors in the hypersonic test market, a critical field primarily involving defense contracts.In 2024, it ran multiple launches using HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron), a modified version of Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket, tailored specifically for hypersonic test missions.Kratos also chose the company to support a $1.45 billion U.S.
defense program called MACH-TB 2.0, which focuses on faster and cheaper ways to test hypersonic technologies.To keep up with fast and frequent testing, Rocket Lab needs to make hardware quickly, and that’s where its 3D printing production gives it an advantage.Electron lifts off at Launch Complex 2.
Image courtesy of Rocket Lab USA and Brady Kenniston.Rocket Lab expects to launch over 20 missions in 2025, including Electron and HASTE flights.By the end of the third quarter of 2025, the company expects to have 40 spacecraft in production and 16 operational in orbit or completed.
Financially, it is projecting $117 to $123 million in revenue for the first quarter of 2025, with gross margins between 25% and 27% and an adjusted EBITDA loss between $33 million and $35 million.Rocket Lab’s record-breaking 2024 proves that AM is now a backbone of space companies in this new race to orbit.In a year where many space startups struggled to survive, Rocket Lab used 3D printing to thrive.
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