A subsidiary of Astrotech Corp. has been awarded a $4 million contract for payload processing services for the U.S. government.

Astrotech Space Operations, based in Austin, Texas, will provide services for satellite hardware launches, including spacecraft checkout, fueling and transportation.

“We look forward to contributing to the success of this U.S. government mission with our payload processing services,” Don M. White, senior vice president and general manager of Astrotech Space Operations, said in a statement. “Astrotech’s specialized, state-of-the-art facilities made us an ideal fit for this mission.”

Astrotech spokesman Scott Haywood declined to comment further on details of the deal.

“We’ve been doing the payload piece of business for commercial and government for quite some time, so this made us a good fit for this mission,” Haywood said.

Since 1982, the company has worked on 290 spacecraft.

Astrotech’s business unit serves government and commercial satellite entities. The company also provides space hardware design and manufacturing services, among other services.