The Supply Chain Behind the Moon - How Contec Technology Powers the Systems That Power Space Exploration

Esteban Osorio
2026-04-01T18:41:52-04:00

Artemis II launched today and Contec technology is part of the supply chain that made it possible. Our DAQ boards and I/O hardware are inside the systems of contractors supporting NASA programs, and through a Space Force program under the U.S. Air Force, our boards are already deployed aboard the International Space Station. This is what 50 years of mission critical engineering looks like.

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Contec hardware is inside the supply chains of contractors supporting NASA's Artemis program — and through a Space Force program under the U.S. Air Force, our boards are already deployed aboard the International Space Station.

Tonight, four astronauts are strapped into an Orion capsule sitting atop the most powerful rocket NASA has ever crewed. Artemis II is launching, and with it, humanity's most ambitious return to deep space in over 50 years. The world is watching Kennedy Space Center. Millions of people know the names of the crew. Very few know the names of the technology that made it possible.
Contec Americas builds that kind of technology.

How Contec Technology Powers the Systems That Power Space Exploration · Artemis II · April 1, 2026

There is a category of technology most people never think about. It doesn't make headlines. It doesn't get featured at consumer trade shows. It exists quietly inside machines that exist inside systems that exist inside programs where the stakes are too high to leave anything to chance.

It is the embedded computing and data acquisition layer of the world's most demanding industries. And right now, some of it is orbiting the Earth at 17,500 miles per hour.

Our hardware operates inside the supply chains of contractors supporting NASA, defense, and Space Force programs. That's not a marketing milestone we planned. It's simply what happens when you spend 50 years refusing to build hardware any other way.

01
The Question Engineers Ask
That Nobody Else Does

When most organizations evaluate hardware, they optimize for performance and price. Those are reasonable starting points, but they're the wrong finish line for mission-critical applications.

The question that actually matters isn't "what does this hardware do?" It's "what happens when I still need this hardware to work in ten years, and the component it depends on has been discontinued?"

That's where standard suppliers fall short, and where programs begin to break down. Consumer and commercial off-the-shelf hardware operate on refresh cycles of two to four years. For a company building a medical device, a defense system, or a space-bound instrument with an 18-month qualification process and a decade-long production lifecycle, that's not a product. It's a countdown clock.

Every time a core component goes end of life, the program faces a costly choice: complete redesign, an unqualified alternative, or a frantic search for remaining inventory. None of those options are acceptable when a system is already deployed in the field — or in orbit.

02
Precision at Every Layer —
The DAQ Hardware in the Supply Chain

The data acquisition and I/O hardware Contec supplies to mission-critical programs isn't chosen for its price point. It's chosen because the specifications leave no room for ambiguity.

Among the specific products supplied to contractors supporting NASA work:

AO-1616L-LPE — 16-channel analog output, 16-bit resolution at 100 KSPS. Precision output control for calibration, simulation, and closed-loop test systems.

AD12-16(PCI) — 16-channel analog and digital input board with Windows and Linux driver support. Engineered for high-speed signal capture in demanding test environments.

AD12-64(PCI) — Multi-channel analog input board for PCI that scales measurement capacity across complex, multi-signal test rigs.

I/O Boards & Cables — The signal-clean infrastructure connecting these systems under real-world operating conditions.

These are the building blocks of systems that measure, validate, and control physical reality with precision. In test labs supporting aerospace qualification programs, the data these boards capture determines whether a system is cleared to fly.

DAQ · Analog Output

AO-1616L-LPE

16-channel analog output board · 16-bit resolution · 100 KSPS · PCIe · Bus isolated · On-board memory
View Product →

DAQ · Analog/Digital Input

AD12-16(PCI)

16-channel analog/digital input · 12-bit · PCI · Windows & Linux driver support · High-speed signal capture
View Product →

DAQ · Multi-Channel Input

AD12-64(PCI)

64-channel analog input · 12-bit · PCI · Scales measurement capacity across complex multi-signal test rigs
View Product →

03
Built for the Long Game —
50 Years of Mission-Critical Manufacturing

Our embedded computing platforms and DAQ systems are designed and supported for product lifecycles of up to 15 years. That commitment is backed by full component traceability and a manufacturing infrastructure that treats longevity as a core deliverable, not an afterthought.

15 Year Lifecycle Support

300+ Global Engineers

50 Years Manufacturing

ISO 9001:2015 certified — Manufacturing quality management across all production facilities

ISO 7 Cleanroom — On-site Class 10,000 controlled environment for demanding production requirements

100% Component Traceability — Full supply chain transparency from sourcing through delivery

ITAR Registered — Cleared for defense, federal, and Space Force programs without compliance friction

U.S.-Based Engineering Support — Dedicated teams throughout every program lifecycle

This is not the profile of a hardware vendor. It is the profile of an engineering partner who understands what it means when failure is not an option.

04
The Invisible Infrastructure
of Exploration

Every major space program runs on a vast web of contractors, subcontractors, and technology suppliers. NASA's own workforce is a fraction of the people who contribute to a mission like Artemis. The real engine is the supply chain: thousands of companies building components, running tests, validating systems, and delivering hardware that has to perform under conditions most technology was never designed to meet.

Contec is embedded in that supply chain at multiple levels — through the defense and aerospace contractors we support directly with NASA programs, and through Space Force deployments where long-lifecycle, high-reliability hardware is a non-negotiable requirement.

When a program can't afford a hardware obsolescence crisis mid-development, they need a supplier who will still be there, and still be supporting the same platform, five or ten years from now. That's not a promise we make. It's a track record we've built.

05
The Same Standard,
Wherever It's Applied

What makes Contec technology suitable for aerospace and defense supply chains is the same thing that makes it suitable for a surgical robotics OEM, a diagnostics manufacturer running high-mix production, or an industrial automation integrator demanding maximum uptime.

The environment changes. The standard doesn't.

In every vertical we serve — from healthcare to defense to aerospace to industrial automation — our clients bring us the same underlying requirement: hardware that performs without compromise, from a supplier who will still be standing behind it years from now. The applications differ. The stakes differ. But the engineering philosophy that underpins the hardware is identical.

Godspeed, Artemis II.

Watching a rocket launch is one of the few things left that makes the whole world stop and look up at the same time. Tonight is one of those nights. We're proud that Contec technology lives inside the supply chains making missions like this possible — and proud that the same engineering standards we apply to space programs are the ones we bring to every customer, every board, and every platform we build.
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Tags Artemis II NASA Space Force DAQ Embedded Computing Mission Critical ITAR Defense Analog I/O Lifecycle Management