SYSPRO, a devoper of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for on-premise and cloud-based utilization, announced today that Windings, a manufacturer of custom electric motor and generator components and a user of SYSPRO ERP since 1998, is the producer of a key component of the sky crane’s braking system that safely lowered Curiosity to the Red Planet for the rover’s explanatory journey of the Mars landscape.

While smaller rovers of past Mars mission have utilized airbag landing systems, the size of Curiosity necessitated the utilization of a special landing system to provide a soft landing for the huge vehicle.

According to Windings President and CEO Jerry Kauffman, this was not the first time that a Windings-built component has been instrumental in assisting in the exploration of planets, as well as the earth’s nearest neighbor, the moon. However, he did indicate that the Curiosity mission is the first time a Windings component has been utilized in the braking system of a device to safely land a large, mobile instrument package on the surface of a planet.

Windings, which is based in New Ulm, MN, has utilized SYSPRO Enterprise Resource Planning software since 1998. Prior to that time, Windings had been utilizing an IBM System 36, which lacked the flexibility to deal with the mixed-mode manufacturing operations utilized by Windings to produce both standard and custom electromagnetic motors, generators and sub-assemblies for numerous industrial uses, including factory automation, renewable energy, automotive, medical, defense and aerospace.