Startup 1872 opens Cincinnati factory to automate steel parts

In short: Former SpaceX engineers have launched a startup called 1872 to build a mostly automated factory for making steel parts, starting with steel skids.

What happened

1872, a new company started by three former SpaceX engineers, officially launched on July 22. It marked the opening with a ribbon cutting at “Factory One” in Cincinnati, Ohio. The team says it is building a prototype factory that can automate most steel fabrication by 2027.

The company’s first product focus is steel skids. These are rectangular steel frames that act like a moveable base for modular buildings, similar to a sturdy pallet made from steel. 1872 plans to sell them to customers building AI data centers and small modular nuclear reactors.

CEO Dan Summers said the goal is not necessarily to remove people from the process entirely. He said the factory might aim for something like 80 percent automated operations if going further brings only small gains.

To start, 1872 used human workers to build skids by hand so it could understand the full process. It is now adding robotic welding through a partnership with Path Robotics. Welding is the process of melting metal to join two pieces together, like using heat to fuse two ends into one.

1872 also describes software it calls “Architect” and “Conductor.” In simple terms, it wants software that can take a customer’s design file and plan the work, order materials, and then direct robots and machines on the factory floor, like a digital foreman.

Why it matters

This push is partly about a labor shortage. The American Welding Society estimates the US will need 320,500 new welding professionals by 2029, as older workers retire and demand rises. If automation can handle more of the repetitive work, factories may be able to keep building needed infrastructure even when skilled workers are harder to find.

Source: Arstechnica