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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The hardware Micro Craft, Inc. produces today might be designed for a hypersonic missile with the latest technology, but the company from Tullahoma, Tenn. has a humble legacy in space flight, having supplied the flag stand planted on the moon by Apollo 11 astronauts.

Micro Craft President & CEO Dr. Kenneth Sullivan says it’s still important to keep jobs for space and defense work local and employ local residents; the company has been based in Tullahoma since its founding in 1958.

“The majority of our employees are machinists, so they had actually been building hardware for many years, and it’s a skill and a trade,” Sullivan says.

As for making the flag stand for the first humans on Mars?

“Ha! that’d be cool to do that. I hope so, if we have that opportunity.”

Sullivan adds that company executives regularly visit schools to help inspire kids to keep thinking creatively, so that in the future, America can utilize space while still preserving small-town economies.