Indiana space contractor gets nod from Pence

GREENVILLE, Ind. (AP) - A space company from a small town in southern Indiana has been recognized by Mike Pence, the state's former governor and current U.S. vice president.

Pence addressed a room of innovators June 18 during the third meeting of the National Space Council in Washington. Pence introduced John Vellinger as CEO of Techshot, a space company the vice president proudly announced is based in Greenville, Indiana, the News and Tribune reported .

"We all just went crazy over (that)," said Rich Boling, Techshot's vice president of corporate advancement, who was also in the meeting. "It was great to get recognition just for this path that we've been pursuing a long time."

The company was founded in 1989 and develops research equipment and tools for spaceflight, launching many of its projects to the International Space Station. Vellinger highlighted a 3D bioprinter at the meeting, one of the company's biggest projects.

The bioprinter is expected to launch to the space station next year, with the goal of manufacturing human tissue. The company hopes the machine could one day produce food and pharmaceuticals to help in deep space exploration.

Boling and Vellinger were also in the room when President Donald Trump announced plans for a U.S. military branch focused on space exploration and national security. Techshot already works in military defense, but sees more potential opportunities with a proposed space force.

It "certainly brings to mind all sorts of other implications that we hadn't considered to" support defense, Boling said.

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Information from: News and Tribune, Jeffersonville, Ind., http://www.newsandtribune.com