The problem
Deep space missions depend on engines that must work perfectly the first time. For decades, India’s space programme has relied on a small group of trusted industrial suppliers to turn ISRO’s designs into flight hardware, from launcher engines to the small thrusters that steer spacecraft.
As India plans more Moon missions, a crewed spaceflight programme and a growing launch rate, ISRO needs private manufacturers that can scale up production while meeting the highest quality standards. Human-rated hardware raises the bar again.
The product
Godrej & Boyce was founded in 1897 and patented what it calls the world’s first springless lock; the Times of India calls it a “lock-to-engine conglomerate”. Its aerospace business makes liquid propulsion engines and other flight hardware for ISRO at its Vikhroli facility in Mumbai. For ISRO’s heaviest launcher, LVM3, it manufactured the L110 engines for the liquid core stage and the thrust chamber of the CE20 cryogenic engine for the upper stage.
The company told the Times of India in 2023 that it also made thrusters for Chandrayaan-3, including those used to raise the spacecraft towards lunar orbit and the descent thrusters on the Vikram lander. Godrej Aerospace’s business head, Maneck Behramkamdin, said all of its liquid engines and satellite thrusters were manufactured at Vikhroli.
Its record goes back further. According to The Hindu, it supplied the Vikas engine, thrusters and antenna parts for Chandrayaan-1, and the L110 and CE20 engines plus orbiter and lander thrusters for Chandrayaan-2. Godrej also says it was involved in Mangalyaan, India’s Mars Orbiter Mission, and in the NISAR Earth observation satellite built with NASA.
How it works
- Design. ISRO’s propulsion centre specifies each engine and component.
- Machine. Godrej machines high-precision parts from specialist alloys.
- Assemble. Engines, thrust chambers and thrusters are built at Vikhroli.
- Test. Hardware is inspected and delivered to ISRO for qualification.
- Integrate. ISRO fits the engines into LVM3, PSLV or GSLV stages.
- Fly. L110 engines power the core stage; the CE20 drives the upper stage.
Timeline
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1985 | Godrej begins aerospace work, according to The New Indian Express |
| Sep 2019 | Chandrayaan-2’s Vikram lander crash-lands; its GSLV Mk III used Godrej L110 and CE20 engines |
| 29 Mar 2023 | Godrej confirms L110 and CE20 hardware for LVM3 |
| 14 Jul 2023 | LVM3 M4 launches Chandrayaan-3 |
| Aug 2023 | Vikram lands near the Moon’s south pole |
| Nov 2025 | First human-rated L110 stage Vikas engine delivered for Gaganyaan |
| May 2026 | ₹100 crore aerospace investment plan and new Khalapur plant announced |
Impact and numbers
Chandrayaan-3’s Vikram lander touched down near the Moon’s south pole in August 2023, four years after Chandrayaan-2’s lander crashed because of a software glitch. Business Standard listed Godrej & Boyce among the private companies behind the mission, alongside other ISRO suppliers.
Godrej says it has contributed to every PSLV and GSLV launch and had delivered more than 175 engines and other critical equipment by 2023. In 2025, it delivered what it called the first-of-its-kind human-rated L110 stage Vikas engine to ISRO’s Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre for the LVM3 Gaganyaan launcher, which is designed to carry Indian astronauts.
The business is growing. Behramkamdin told The New Indian Express in May 2026 that Godrej Aerospace closed FY26 with ₹435 crore in revenue and expects ₹545 to 550 crore this fiscal year. It is building a much larger plant at Khalapur, near Panvel, on a 100 acre site that will be at least five times bigger than the Vikhroli campus. Outside space, the business supplies nearly 7,000 aircraft engine parts and claims to be the only private company in India able to make all five modules of an aero engine.
Honest caveats
Build to print. Godrej manufactures to ISRO’s designs. The New Indian Express says it is only now shifting from a build-to-print model towards its own design and research, with a team in Bengaluru.
Space is a small part of revenue. Behramkamdin said most income comes from foreign aircraft engine makers, and described ISRO work as “not for commercial gains but part of our way of giving it back to the nation”.
Defence work. ET Manufacturing reports that Godrej has delivered hundreds of components for the BrahMos missile and makes modules of the Kaveri derivative engine planned for an unmanned combat aircraft. This story covers only its civil space hardware.
Inconsistent figures. The company said in 2023 it had invested ₹250 crore in a new Khalapur facility; in 2026 The New Indian Express described a ₹500 crore plant. Growth figures also differ: about 25% (ET Manufacturing) versus 30% expected (The New Indian Express).
Environmental relevance is indirect. Rocket engines burn propellants and launches have emissions. The value lies in science, skills and Earth observation missions that ISRO launches with the same rockets.
What’s next
Godrej expects to move out of Vikhroli over the next two years into the Khalapur plant and plans about ₹100 crore of investment in design, research and digital manufacturing over three years. Its human-rated engines will support ISRO’s Gaganyaan flights.
Why it matters for Europe and green buyers
For Europe, Godrej shows how a long-term supplier relationship can build world-class precision manufacturing outside traditional aerospace hubs. European engine makers already buy parts from Godrej, and ESA and its suppliers can learn from ISRO’s model of low-cost, reliable industrial partnerships for deep space missions.
For India, Godrej is proof that private industry can be trusted with mission-critical hardware, from Moon landers to human spaceflight. For the world, more capable launch and spacecraft suppliers mean more missions for science, climate monitoring and exploration.
Sources & image credits
- Godrej, “Godrej Aerospace contributes to ISRO’s heaviest rocket LVM3”, 29 Mar 2023. https://www.godrejenterprises.com/newsroom/press-releases/press-release-godrej-aerospace-isro-lvm3
- The Hindu, “Godrej Aerospace has supplied critical components for Chandrayaan-3 mission”, Jul 2023. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/godrej-aerospace-has-supplied-critical-components-for-chandrayaan-3-mission/article67064881.ece
- Times of India, “We are providing engines for Chandrayaan-3 launcher, thrusters for spacecraft, lander: Godrej”, Jul 2023. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/we-are-providing-engines-for-chandrayaan-3-launcher-thrusters-for-spacecraft-lander-godrej/articleshow/101647807.cms
- Business Standard, “Here’s how private sector companies contributed to Chandrayaan-3 mission”, 24 Aug 2023. https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/here-s-how-private-sector-companies-contributed-to-chandrayaan-3-mission-123082400492_1.html
- Godrej Enterprises Group, “Aerospace business of Godrej Enterprises Group delivers L110 Stage Vikas Engine for Gaganyaan Programme”, Nov 2025. https://www.godrejenterprises.com/newsroom/press-releases/aerospace-business-of-godrej-enterprises-group-delivers-l110-stage-vikas-engine-for-gaganyaan-programme
- The New Indian Express, “Godrej Aerospace sees 30% jump in revenue this fiscal; to open new plant outside Mumbai”, 7 May 2026. https://www.newindianexpress.com/business/2026/May/07/godrej-aerospace-sees-30-jump-in-revenue-this-fiscal-to-open-new-plant-outside-mumbai
- ET Manufacturing, “Godrej Enterprises Group plans ₹100 crore investment in aero business over next three years”, 11 May 2026. https://manufacturing.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/aerospace-defence/godrej-enterprises-group-plans-100-crore-investment-in-aero-business-over-next-three-years/131002723
- Wikimedia Commons, “LVM3 M4, Chandrayaan-3 - Launch vehicle lifting off (edit)”. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LVM3_M4,_Chandrayaan-3_-_Launch_vehicle_lifting_off_from_the_Second_Launch_Pad_(SLP)_of_SDSC-SHAR,_Sriharikota_(edit).jpg
Images: “LVM3 M4, Chandrayaan-3 - Launch vehicle lifting off from the Second Launch Pad (SLP) of SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota (edit)”, Indian Space Research Organisation, derivative work by UnpetitproleX, 14 Jul 2023, Government Open Data License India, via Wikimedia Commons.
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