Mobile Launcher 2

Next Stop: The Moon

Bechtel is proud to partner with NASA in their pursuit to safely send astronauts to the Moon and Mars in the Artemis IV mission and beyond.

Bechtel is designing, building, testing, and commissioning the Mobile Launcher 2 – a new ground structure that will be used to support the Block 1B variant of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The SLS is designed to carry the Orion spacecraft, four astronauts, and their support equipment to the Moon. As the Artemis mission progresses, the SLS rocket will evolve to meet the demands of those missions. With Bechtel’s help, this mobile launcher will support the SLS rocket in the Artemis IV mission and beyond.

The Bechtel team is working from the Kennedy Space Center to bring the mobile launcher from design to liftoff by providing project management, architectural and engineering design, technical integration, fabrication, construction, testing, commissioning, and quality control services.

NASA has entrusted Bechtel to deliver critical infrastructure that is needed for the most important human space missions of this century. We are proud to progress the Artemis mission in its pursuit to return to the Moon, and further to Mars.

Building ML2 Safely and Efficiently

To promote safety and efficiency during construction, the Bechtel team separated the assembly of Mobile Launcher 2 into two focus areas: assembling the base at the ML2 Parksite by the Vehicle Assembly Building and applying a modular approach for constructing the tower at the Mod Yard near NASA headquarters at Kennedy Space Center.

At peak construction, over 650 skilled craft professionals are needed to construct ML2. Promoting the safety of the ML2 workforce is a key focus in execution planning. This focus led to a decision to assemble the primary steel for the launcher’s base at just eight feet off the ground, decreasing work done at height and allowing flexibility in the steel erection process.

Assembling the tower modules at the Mod Yard also allows for work to be performed closer to the ground, and decreases work executed overhead. Lessons learned from the assembly of the modules was quickly applied by the team to ensure efficient construction of all seven modules.

Reaching a height of 392 feet, Mobile Launcher 2 will provide the key support systems for the SLS Block 1B rocket during assembly in Kennedy’s VAB, transport to and from Launch Pad 39B, launch. Each tower module has unique features that integrate with the rocket through 11 umbilicals and the 50 subsystems running on ML2. Click on each level to learn more about ML2 and its tower modules.

Leveraging Our Expertise & Trusted Network to Deliver

Bechtel’s engineering experts provide detailed analysis and innovative designs to overcome engineering challenges to building an SLS Block1B-rated mobile launcher. A system of systems, the launcher will integrate more than 50 critical subsystems needed to service the SLS Block 1B, including cryogenic fuels, power, communications, coolant, and stabilization for the rocket during the launch sequence. Designed to endure the forces of SLS Block 1B launch sequences, ML2 will withstand a launch environment of greater than 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit, blast pressures of more than 130 psi, and thrust of more than 8.9 million pounds.

Bechtel’s team of skilled procurement professionals are working closely with suppliers from across the country and around the world to secure the steel, supplies and equipment needed to build the launcher. More than $500 million in procurements have been awarded to 275 subcontractors and suppliers who have joined Bechtel in supporting NASA and the Artemis mission.

Materials used to assemble the mobile launcher have been sourced from more than 35 states, including steel trusses that have travelled from Iowa, Kansas, Utah, Louisiana, and South Carolina. International support comes from suppliers in Brazil and Spain, which are also delivering structural steel used to build the structure’s critical tower modules.

ML2’s transition into the construction phase of the project highlights Bechtel’s expertise in executing complex construction projects through partnerships with local talent. During peak construction at ML2, more than 650 union craft professionals will work across several of Bechtel’s construction sites at Kennedy. Pipefitters, electricians, ironworkers, plumbers, scaffolders and heavy equipment operators are the experienced craft professionals who will have a hand in sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars starting with Artemis IV.

View looking up at the sky through ML2 construction

Contracting Small & Diverse Businesses to Increase Access to Opportunity

Bechtel is at its best when we partner with the local communities where we operate. This includes engaging small and medium-sized businesses and giving back to the cities where we work and live.

More than 30 small and diverse businesses located within Florida’s Space Coast have been contracted to provide support to the ML2 project. This support ranges from providing engineering services and industrial supplies, to manufacturing critical equipment needed to operate the launcher and support the SLS Block 1B.

Small Suppliers

Of the 262 total suppliers contracted to support ML2, more than 170 are small businesses.

Diverse Owners

More than 60 of those small businesses are owned by women and veterans.

of Contracts

Small and diverse businesses have netted more than two-thirds of all ML2 subcontract dollars and 80% of all unique order contracts.

Forging Local Partnerships to Build a Positive Legacy

Bechtel’s partnerships within the local Space Coast community go beyond helping make our customer’s ambitions a reality. By targeting support toward an array of nonprofits, the ML2 team’s fundraising efforts and charitable contributions have bolstered the missions of key community stakeholders around Kennedy and throughout the state.

A wide network of nonprofits received charitable contributions from the ML2 project and its employees in 2024. Nearly $60,000 advanced 27 charity programs in the area, with aid geared toward empowering youth, fostering grassroots community building, supporting veterans, protecting Florida wildlife and much more. The ML2 team is proud to partner with these organizations and support them in their efforts throughout the Space Coast.