safety and mission success through engineering excellence ralph r. roe, director nasa engineering...

SAFETY AND MISSION SUCCESS THROUGH SAFETY AND MISSION SUCCESS THROUGH ENGINEERING EXCELLENCEENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

SAFETY AND MISSION SUCCESS THROUGH SAFETY AND MISSION SUCCESS THROUGH ENGINEERING EXCELLENCEENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

Ralph R. Roe, Director Ralph R. Roe, Director NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC)NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC)

Mil-Aero Programmable Logic DevicesMil-Aero Programmable Logic DevicesMAPLD 2005 MAPLD 2005

Washington, DCWashington, DCSeptember 7, 2005September 7, 2005

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The NESC provides a strong technical team to coordinate and conduct robust, independent engineering and safety assessments across the Agency

BACKGROUND

2003 2004

July NESC Created

October Mgmt Plan Approved

November Operational

2005

August91st Assessment

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• Simple, straightforward concept

– Bring together some of NASA’s best engineers with experts from industry, academia, and other government agencies to address our highest risk, most complex issues

• Decentralized organizational structure across all Centers reporting to the NESC management office at LaRC

• Engineers need to be where the problems are to stay sharp

NESC MODEL

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• Small core of engineering experts at Centers for insight into respective programs

• Recognized Agency discipline experts leading Super Problem Resolution Teams (SPRT)

– Use “ready” experts from across NASA, Industry, Academia and other government agencies to staff SPRT’s

– Tap “ready” experts to attack “trouble spots”. Institutionalize the Tiger Team approach

• Strong Systems Engineering function for proactive trending and identification of problem areas before failures occur

NESC MODEL (cont’d)

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NESC ORGANIZATION

NESC

Office of the Director

NESC

Office of the Director

NASA HQ

Representative

NESC Management &

Technical Support Office

NESC Management &

Technical Support Office

NASA HQ Chief Engineer

Representative

NESC Systems

Engineering Office

NESC Systems

Engineering OfficeNESC Principal

Engineers Office

NESC Principal

Engineers Office

NESC Chief Engineers

Office (One per Center)

NESC Chief Engineers

Office (One per Center)

NESC Discipline ExpertEngineers and Independent

Technical Authority Discipline Warrant Holders Office

NESC Discipline ExpertEngineers and Independent

Technical Authority Discipline Warrant Holders Office

13 NESC Super

Problem Resolution

Teams (SPRTs)

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NASA

84%

DOE Labs1%

University4%

Industry10%

DoD

1%4275

49

20

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SUPER PROBLEM RESOLUTION TEAM (SPRT) COMPOSITION

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WFF - 1HQ - 7ARC - 31

DFRC- 13

JPL - 35

JSC- 91 SSC - 13

KSC - 26

MSFC - 57

GSFC - 50

GRC - 56

WSTF- 3

LaRC - 42IV&V - 2

Locations of NASA Personnel Participating in NESC SPRTs

NESC ORGANIZATION

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PARTNERSHIPS

National Instituteof Aerospace

Lawrence LivermoreNational Laboratories

Institute of NuclearPower Operations

Wedeven Associates, Inc.

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NESC RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI)

• Measuring how much an organization has contributed is not a simple task.

• Traditional ROI does not truly measure value added by the NESC.

• The most significant contribution of the NESC is the immeasurable benefit of bringing together NESC experts with Program experts to solve complex problems.

• The results are:– Better, safer technical solutions– Stronger checks and balances– Well-informed decision making

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EXAMPLES OF NESC VALUE-ADDED

Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) Testing• NESC working with the NASA Office of Logic Design (OLD) on FPGA

testing, analysis, and evaluation.

• Independent test program of FPGA reliability conducted by NESC

• Testing and methodology development is an Agency-wide activity supported by NESC

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Space Shuttle Orbiter Main Propulsion System Flowliner

• NESC provided an analytical solution backed by laboratory tests and high fidelity inspection techniques that eliminated the need for a planned engine test program.

• Cost Avoidance (>$20M)

Slots in Flowliners

Flowliner at interface to SSME low pressure turbopump Crack in OV-102

Risk of foreign object debris into SSME

Gimbal Joint

Bellows

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Orbiter Composite Over-wrapped Pressure Vessels (COPV)

• NESC research led to the discovery of data that indicated a significant reduction in life and reliability of Orbiter COPV

• Data was not readily available to Program experts working day-to-day operations.

• Results brought about a better understanding of the risk and avoided a potential catastrophic failure.

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Rotating Service Structure (RSS) Stress Analysis

• NESC team provided peer review of United Space Alliance stress analysis of the Space Shuttle launch pad RSS

• NESC brought forward industry best practices which avoided unnecessary modifications to the launch pad.

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Cassini/Huygens Probe Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL)

• NESC team independently modeled the Entry, Descent and Landing of the Huygens probe.

• This modeling provided a better, more in-depth understanding of the risks for probe EDL.

• No change was made in the mission but Agency leadership had better information to make an informed go, no-go decision just prior to probe release.

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TECHNICAL HIGHLIGHTSReturn to Flight

External Tank

Human Factors Feedline BellowsIce Elimination

Non-DestructiveEvaluation (NDE)

Foam Dissection Data

Liquid Hydrogen Fwd Dome

Intertank Flange Section

Flange Closeout Insulation

Intertank Acreage Foam

Insulation

Liquid Hydrogen Tank Acreage Foam

Insulation

Intertank Hat Stiffeners

Liquid Hydrogen

Tank

Bolt

Inner Mold Line Void

Y-Joint

Dome FoamInsulation

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RCS Thruster Cracks Wing Leading Edge (WLE)Attachment Hardware Integrity

WLE

Attachment Hardware

Cure-in-Place Ablative Applicator Tile Repair

Rudder Speed Brake Actuator

Math Models

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Post Proof NDE OF Module Welds

T-0 Umbilical InterfaceBUMPER Micro- Meteoroid/Orbital Debris IV&V

Body Flap Actuator

Recurring Anomalies - Solid Rocket Booster Hold Down Post

Stud Hangup

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• The NESC has built a strong technical team to be used as a NASA-wide technical resource.

• The NESC is an investment in technical excellence and safety.

• NESC would like to encourage broad participation from national experts on our teams.

• Learn more about NESC @nesc.nasa.gov

SUMMARY

safety and mission success through engineering excellence ralph r. roe, director nasa engineering...

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