About Us

Plasma Processes, LLC was founded in 1993 and is an AS9100D/ISO9001 certified non-traditional defense contractor. We specialize in the development, manufacture, and coating of engineered materials and their applications for extreme conditions. We offer a wide range of manufacturing and coating processes, each with unique characteristics for specific applications. Our core competencies include a complete family of thermal spray processes (air plasma, inert plasma, shroudded, plasma spray, vacuum plasma spray, high pressure cold spray, HVOF, wire-arc, etc.), EL-Form® Molten Salt Electrodeposition, Laser-Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) additive manufacturing, arc-jet testing, and powder processing such as Powder Alloying and Spheroidization (PAS). We offer services through testing, consulting, design, analysis, quality, program management, and an in-house metallurgical laboratory for material analysis and characterization. We also provide risk reduction testing through arc-jet testing using our Plasma booths that can mimic trajectories of vehicles and help further component development and validation. Our coatings include both environmental and thermal barriers coatings (EBC/TBC), along with protection systems for radiation, EMI, oxidation, ablation, and other applications. Plasma also provides advanced mono-propellant thrusters and propulsion systems under the Rubicon Space Systems division. We have expanded our additive manufacturing capabilities, and we produce many propulsion and other system components that go on other customers’ platforms. These products consist of pintles, throats (non-eroding), nozzles, thrust chambers/gas generators, and more. In 2024 we expanded into our second facility and made expansions in capability and equipment related to machining, post processing, testing, and more. We also integrated a new ERP System. Plasma primary core competence is in the manufacture of ultra-high temperature materials, rocket nozzles other propulsion components, including our own in-house product line of thrusters. Specifically for this effort, Plasma is fully qualified to produce materials and coatings suited for scramjet vehicles capable of reaching large Mach speeds.

In 2022, the propulsion division of Plasma Processes was rebranded as Rubicon Space Systems and given the mandate to commercialize its line of thrusters and develop a line of propulsion systems for the small satellite industry. Rubicon Space Systems is a committed champion and partner in creating a more verdant space economy. We are a developer and provider of in-space propulsion systems and thrusters that use the low-toxicity “green” and safe Advanced Space Craft Energetic Non-Toxic propellant (ASCENT), also known as AF-M315E. PLASMA has more than 30 years of combined experience in developing green propulsion technologies and thousands of hours of thruster testing experience. Our team leads the world in the development and infusion of ASCENT-based technology. Our goal is to provide fully realized propulsion system solutions to the spacecraft integrator at a cost-point that makes it an easy decision to “go green”. Our team leads the world in the development and infusion of ASCENT propellant technology. Rubicon Space Systems has won programs for 0.1N, 1N, 5N and 100N thruster developments and has won a program to build a propulsion system for NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, which leverages our experience and lessons learned with the Lunar Flashlight propulsion system. Rubicon’s capability includes, Design and Analysis, Fabrication, Assembly and Test, Systems Engineering, Software and Electrical Engineering, and Project Management.

Plasma is a fully integrated company with engineering, manufacturing, programs, quality, business development/sales, operations, contracts, purchasing/supply chain, IT, and finance departments in-house. We also have software for planning/tracking contracts, operations, quality documents, technical documents, and more. We have appropriate protocols for specific handling of information. We have specialized in research and development (R&D) delivering prototypes and have expanded within the last 10 years into production and high-rate production initiatives. In addition to design, fabrication, and manufacturing, Plasma also has an innate capability to manage and maintain supply chain throughout the project. During program execution, customer requirements and specifications are flowed down through Plasma’s established program management processes that work very closely with design engineering and manufacturing groups to ensure schedules agreed upon are met. As required, engineering design and fabrication activities are linked through a configuration management system, and through detailed work instructions that define each step of the process per customer requirements.