One Employee’s Passion

Aerospace Case Study

Tom, One of Qualitas’ top machinists, has a keen interest in high-performance amateur rocketry. Working individually or in a club setting, Tom and other enthusiasts travel to launch pads throughout central Arizona and Nevada to watch their rockets soar. Other buffs frequently utilize kits, but Tom – who is self-taught, prefers starting from scratch. From machining to 3-D printing, Tom is involved in the creation of every component in his rockets. He has even used parts made in-house by Qualitas with great results.

Ranging in size from 1 foot tall to over 20 feet long, and lacking a traditional payload, these rockets instead carry electronics vital to recovery post-launch. Running on a solid fuel, APCP, they roar across the sky, with speeds ranging from subsonic to hyper-sonic. With countless projects, tests and runs under his belt, Tom’s current goal is to reach the Kármán Line – the edge of space. Here at Qualitas we couldn’t be more excited for what Tom will accomplish next, and we look forward to being a part of the process. Qualitas is an active sponsor of Tom’s quest to reach the Kármán Line.