Teaching people the craft so future testing cycles move faster
In the quiet but consequential work of preparing hardware for the extremes of space, Ireland has taken a deliberate step toward building the human expertise its growing sector will need. Through a partnership between Space Industry Skillnet and Resonate Testing — a Newry firm whose credentials include the James Webb Space Telescope — six Irish companies completed the first hands-on training in vibration and shock testing, the unglamorous discipline that determines whether a satellite survives its own launch. It is a small beginning, but one that reflects a larger understanding: that a nation's ambitions in space are only as durable as the skills of the people doing the work.
- Ireland's space sector is expanding faster than its workforce can keep pace, creating a skills gap in the specialized testing that every piece of space hardware must pass before launch.
- Resonate Testing — whose engineers have certified components for some of the world's most ambitious missions — agreed to translate that hard-won expertise into a structured, two-day hands-on course.
- Six Irish companies completed the first session, gaining practical knowledge in vibration and shock testing that could directly reduce turnaround times on future projects.
- The initiative is openly framed as both workforce development and competitive strategy, with Resonate's managing director calling on Northern Ireland's development bodies to invest similarly before the window narrows.
- Space Industry Skillnet is now planning to scale the program across the island of Ireland and internationally, treating this first course as the foundation of a much broader skills pipeline.
Ireland's space industry received a practical boost when Space Industry Skillnet partnered with Resonate Testing to deliver specialized training in vibration and shock testing — the essential, unglamorous discipline of proving that hardware can survive the violence of launch and the extremes of orbit. Resonate, a Newry-based firm whose work spans components for the James Webb Space Telescope and ESA's Lunar Pathfinder, ran the first two-day course at its own facility, with six Irish companies in attendance.
The program grew out of a conversation in late 2021, when Space Industry Skillnet approached Resonate about creating hands-on training for engineers, project managers, and anyone responsible for equipment testing. Test engineer Conor Barry, who oversees the course, noted that the response was immediate — and the motivation was as much practical as it was altruistic. Engineers who understand testing deeply can design better experiments and interpret results faster, which shortens turnaround times for clients.
Managing director Tom Mallon used the occasion to make a broader point: if Northern Ireland wants to compete globally in the space sector, its regional development bodies need to invest in skills infrastructure now. The training was funded through Skillnet Ireland and the Department of Further and Higher Education, with support from Space Industry Skillnet's member companies.
What began as a single course at one facility is being positioned as the start of something larger. Space Industry Skillnet plans to expand the program across the island of Ireland and eventually beyond — a measured but deliberate effort to build the expertise pipeline that Ireland's space ambitions will ultimately depend on.
Ireland's space industry got a practical boost this year when a specialized training program launched to teach companies how to test equipment for the brutal conditions of launch and orbit. The course, delivered by Resonate Testing—a Newry-based firm that has certified components for the James Webb Space Telescope and the European Space Agency's Lunar Pathfinder spacecraft—focuses on vibration and shock testing, the unglamorous but essential work of ensuring that hardware survives the violence of space travel.
Space Industry Skillnet, the Irish government training division focused on the sector, approached Resonate Testing in late 2021 about creating a hands-on program. The company agreed, and the first two-day course ran at Resonate's facility with six Irish companies in attendance. The training is pitched at engineers, project managers, and anyone responsible for understanding or improving how equipment gets tested before it leaves Earth. The goal is straightforward: teach people the craft so that future testing cycles move faster and more reliably.
Resonate Testing is not a household name, but its work is everywhere in the space industry. The company tests components and assemblies for clients across multiple sectors, but its space credentials are substantial. When a satellite or probe is being built, it has to survive acceleration forces during launch, temperature swings in orbit, and the vacuum itself. Resonate's engineers run the tests that prove equipment can handle all of it. That expertise—the knowledge of what breaks, how it breaks, and why—is what the training program taps into.
Conor Barry, a test engineer at Resonate, oversees the course. He noted that when Space Industry Skillnet first approached the company, the response was immediate. The training is not just altruism; Barry pointed out that engineers who understand vibration and shock testing can design better tests and interpret results more quickly, which means faster turnaround for customers who have taken the course. It's a business case wrapped in workforce development.
Tom Mallon, Resonate's managing director, sees the training as part of a larger strategy. The company is positioned to serve clients across Ireland, Northern Ireland, and the UK, and Mallon used the occasion to call on Northern Ireland's regional development bodies to invest similarly in space sector training. The message was clear: if the region wants to compete globally in space, it needs to build the skills pipeline now.
The course was funded by Skillnet Ireland through the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, with additional support from Space Industry Skillnet's member companies. The plan is to expand. Space Industry Skillnet intends to run more training sessions, eventually reaching companies across the entire island of Ireland and beyond. What started as a two-day course at one facility is being positioned as the beginning of a broader effort to deepen expertise in a sector that Ireland is betting on for economic growth.
Citações Notáveis
This is a fantastic opportunity to share our knowledge and expertise in shock and vibration testing, and it has the potential to ensure quicker turnaround times in the future for tests from our customers.— Conor Barry, test engineer at Resonate Testing
We call upon Northern Ireland's regional development and investment bodies to follow a similar approach and actively support the upskilling of the workforce to enable the region to compete on the global stage.— Tom Mallon, managing director of Resonate Testing
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does vibration and shock testing matter so much in space work? It sounds like a narrow skill.
It's narrow, but it's foundational. Every piece of hardware that goes to space has to survive launch—the shaking, the acceleration, the temperature swings. If you don't test it properly, it fails in orbit, and you've lost millions. Resonate has done this for the James Webb Telescope. That's not a small thing.
So the training is really about teaching people how to run those tests correctly?
Yes, but also how to design them, interpret the results, and do it efficiently. If an engineer understands the principles, they can catch problems earlier and avoid wasting time on bad tests.
Why did Space Industry Skillnet approach Resonate specifically?
Because Resonate has the real-world experience. They've tested actual flight hardware. You can't teach this from a textbook. You need someone who has seen what actually breaks.
And the first course had six companies. That seems small.
It is, but it's a start. The idea is to build a network of people who understand this work, so when they go back to their companies, they bring that knowledge with them. It compounds.
What does Resonate get out of it?
Faster, better tests from their customers down the line. And they position themselves as the authority in the region. But also, they're building the ecosystem they need to grow. If there's no skilled workforce, there's no space industry.
Is this just Ireland, or is it bigger?
They're starting in Ireland, but the ambition is to expand across the island and internationally. Resonate is already positioned to serve the UK and Northern Ireland. This training is part of that expansion.