ROCKFORD, IL—Ingersoll Machine Tools Inc. recently began assembling the world’s largest telescope mount at its factory here. When built, the complex device will be shipped to the Atacama Desert in Chile where it will be reassembled for use with the Giant Magellan Telescope, which is expected to be 200 times more powerful than existing ground-based devices.

The 2,100-metric-ton mount is a 29-meter-tall precision moving structure. It will support seven of the world's largest mirrors, adaptive optics and scientific instruments. Despite its size, the mount is engineered to glide frictionlessly on a film of oil just 50 microns thick, ensuring stability and precision as it tracks celestial objects billions of light years away.