Frenzy engine models will range from 6 inches to 9 inches in diameter and 100 to 300 pounds in thrust. (Image courtesy Beehive Industries)
A newly developed family of jet engines is reported to offer high efficiency at a fraction of the cost of traditionally manufactured engines.
DENVER, Colo.—A new family of additively-enabled jet engines developed by contract manufacturer Beehive Industries is purpose-built to meet exacting mission requirements for small, single-use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Beehive’s Frenzy™ jet engines offer “class-leading efficiency at a fraction of the cost of traditionally manufactured engines,” according to a release on the company’s website.
“Frenzy engines power swarm class drones and munitions intended to overwhelm an adversary’s defenses through sheer number,” said Gordie Follin, Beehive’s chief product officer, in the release. “These systems are low-cost, compact, and designed to deploy in mass quantities, a fierce combination that our military needs.”
Once a new engine is complete, Beehive can take it to large scale production volumes rapidly because of its vertically integrated supply chain and additively-enabled design methods, the release stated.
“Frenzy engines provide everything that the Swarm mission needs and nothing that they don’t,” said Follin. “They are designed to maximize the value of additive manufacturing, meaning best-in-class performance and cost.”
Another requirement of large volume swarm applications is immediate usability after long term storage. The Frenzy engines reportedly can be kept in a “ready to run” environment for more than 10 years and deployed en masse at a moment’s notice. Frenzy engine models will range from 6 inches to 9 inches in diameter and 100 to 300 pounds in thrust.
Beehive Industries has secured its first contract for the development and delivery of 30 Frenzy engines with the University of Dayton Research Institute, sponsored by the United States Air Force. The additively-enabled engines are scheduled to be delivered within 24 months from the contract signing in October 2024, the release stated.
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