Constellium and EPFL join forces

At Constellium, innovation is not just about materials—it’s about people. That’s why we’re proud to partner with the EPFL Rocket Team, a student-led initiative from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), dedicated to pushing the boundaries of aerospace engineering.

Over the past two years, this collaboration has grown into a dynamic exchange of expertise, creativity, and ambition. Together, we’ve contributed to the development of Firehorn-30, the team’s most advanced rocket to date. As the first in a new class of cryogenic bi-liquid rockets, Firehorn represents a major leap forward in student-led aerospace engineering and will compete at the EuRoC European student rocket competition in Portugal on October 4-5, 2025.

As part of this partnership, Constellium provided both advanced aluminum solutions and technical guidance to support the team’s design and performance goals. Our engineers worked closely with the students to evaluate the benefits of transitioning from traditional steel and 6xxx series aluminum to aerospace-grade alloys, specifically 2xxx series and Airware® 2050-T84, for key structural components and propellant tank. The results: significant reduction in dry mass, up to 53% for the propellant tank and up to 13% for the structural components, translating into improved performance, greater payload capacity, and enhanced cost-efficiency.

Beyond the technical achievements, this project has become a powerful human adventure.

“This partnership reflects Constellium’s strong commitment to education, applied research, and innovation in advanced aluminum for the space industry. We are proud to contribute to this project not only through high-performance aluminum solutions, but above all through a rich and meaningful collaboration with talented and passionate students who are boldly shaping the future of space engineering.”
— Lionel Thomas, Global Sales Director, Aerospace, Constellium.

On Friday September 26th 2025, Constellium was invited to the reveal of Firehorn-30, a key milestone for the students and their achievement. 

“Seeing Firehorn-30 unveiled was a powerful moment. For the students, it marked the culmination of years of dedication, learning, and teamwork. For me, it was a moment of pride to witness how Constellium’s products and technical support helped bring their vision to life.”        —  Bernard de Mestral, Customer Application Engineer, Aerospace, Constellium. 

The event also showed other promising initiatives like the Icarus project and offered a glimpse into the Rocket team’s long-term vision.

Constellium remains fully committed to continuing this partnership, exploring new aluminum solutions tailored to the challenges of space exploration. Together, we aim to go further, reach higher—and one day, perhaps, touch the stars.