APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE
PARTNERING FOR MISSION SUCCESS
GETTING IT RIGHT
TO SUBSCRIBE: gettingitright@aero.org
The Quarterly Newsletter of Mission Assurance
Volume 6, Issue 1 / August 3, 2015
MISSION ASSURANCE IMPROVEMENT WORKSHOP CONTINUES TO DEVELOP
SOLUTIONS FOR CHALLENGES FACING SPACE INDUSTRY
Subject matter experts across industry,
government, and FFRDCs gathered for
the eighth annual Mission Assurance
Improvement Workshop hosted by
Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale, California,
May 5–7. Experts from 37 organizations
collaborated in reviewing draft materials,
adjudicating comments, and gaining
consensus on the practical guidance
that will be included in the 2015 MAIW
products on the following topics: ASIC/
FPGA Malicious Attack Mitigation, Design
Review Process Improvements, Process
Approach to Determining Quality Inspection
Deployment, and RF Breakdown Prevention
Standard Development Part 2: Ionization
Breakdown and Multicarrier Excitation.
PHOTO COURTESY OF LOCKHEED MARTIN
By JACQUELINE M. WYRWITZKE
The Aerospace Corporation
MAIW participants gather in Sunnyvale, California, May 5–7 to wrap up their work on practical-guidance products that
will be published soon.
A year prior to the workshop, topics with
a defined charter and desired deliverable
are selected by a steering committee of
industry, government, and federally funded
research and development center members.
Core teams of subject matter experts are
assembled from across government and
industry to develop the draft deliverable,
such as a best practice guide, over the
course of several months. The products
developed by workshop participants are
available not only for their implementation
continued on page 4
WEAVING THE QUALITY THREAD IN LOCKHEED MARTIN’S DIGITAL TAPESTRY
By MELANIE A. SLOANE
Vice President of Quality Assurance,
Lockheed Martin Space Systems
The efficient and
early inclusion of
quality in the
Digital Tapestry is
changing the way
Lockheed Martin’s
Space Systems does
business. We are
creating a seamless
link between engineering, production, and
the supply chain. Using virtual design tools,
we use the same 3-D information from
concept to cosmos, making a faster and
more affordable lifecycle.
The problem of keeping up with an everchanging and evolving business market is
being confronted head-on by our Quality
Assurance organization. Our customers’
budgets are declining, yet the demand
for our products and expertise is growing.
That is where our Digital Tapestry
comes in, pushing the frontiers of digital
technology by linking all stages of the
product lifecycle.
Quality has six threads within the weave of
the Digital Tapestry:
• Conceptualization: We can make rapid,
iterative trades during conceptualization
of designs, built from a virtual catalog
of components.
• Design and Analysis: Engineers use autocoding and highly accurate visualization
tools tied to historical data to better
refine designs.
• Simulation and Optimization: We can
simulate performance of a prototype
as well as of a part, allowing for the
detection and elimination of defects in
designs or processes much earlier.
continued on page 3
MANAGING SUPPLY CHAIN RISKS IN NATIONAL SECURITY SPACE
By TERITA NORTON
The Aerospace Corporation
The space industrial base is shrinking due to reduced budgets and
the loss of skilled talent needed to produce the critical components
necessary to support national security space systems. These factors
are adding strain to the defense supply chain, requiring major space
contractors to procure products globally.
Increased reliance on global sources introduces a host of threats
and opportunities of risk including counterfeit parts, malicious
attacks, and theft. The DOD and space community supply chain is
more vulnerable than ever1. Supply chain risk management (SCRM)
has emerged as a natural extension of supply chain management,
with the prime objective of identifying potential sources of risks and
suggesting suitable action plans to mitigate them.
This encompasses the governance and controls that ensure the
integrity of the processes, materials, and products in the supply
chain. Supply chain failures and vulnerabilities have far-reaching
implications in supporting U.S. critical infrastructure. Currently the
U.S. is very dependent on foreign sources for hardware, firmware,
and, in some cases, software. In the last year, there have been 10
space industrial base consolidations, three of which involved sales to
a foreign entity. This intensifies the need to secure the supply chain.
Awareness of supply chain risks throughout a system’s lifecycle is
important to mitigating a source’s vulnerability.
Supply chain security and risk management procedures are necessary
to ensure the integrity and security of the hardware, software,
firmware, technical data, and networks that constitute U.S. national
security space systems and flow through the supply chain. In 2012,
Homeland Security released a government strategy to secure the
global supply chain, which establishes two goals. The first is to
promote the efficient and secure movement of goods, and to foster
a global supply chain system that is prepared for and can withstand
evolving threats and hazards, and then can rapidly recover from
disruptions. The second goal is to continue and enhance risk
management efforts.
The strategy also identifies a number of priority areas including
managing supply chain risk. Additionally, the Office of Technology
Evaluation (OTE) has kicked off three separate studies to address
supply chain concerns. These studies include the U.S. Rocket
Propulsion Industrial Base Assessment and Printed Circuit Boards
Supply Chain Assessment, which is expected to be completed in
spring 2016, and the Strategic Materials Supply Chain Assessment,
scheduled to be completed in fall 2015.
Birdsong, Barry. Supply Chain Risks. 21st Annual Conference on Quality in the
Space and Defense Industry, February 24, 2015.
1
For more information, contact Terita Norton, The Aerospace Corporation,
571.304.7840, terita.r.norton@aero.org.
MINIMIZING HANDLING ISSUES
By GAIL JOHNSON-ROTH
The Aerospace Corporation
in place commensurate with the value of the
product and criticality of the operation.
Handling continues to be a known risk area
that can result in loss of productivity due to
cost and schedule impacts, personal injury,
and mission impacts or mission failures.
Material handling can be improved through
innovation, enhancement of a defined
process, application of proper equipment,
and appropriate training of personnel.
Lack of end-to-end planning can contribute
to handling errors, which can include
availability of appropriate tools, fixtures,
transport equipment, and/or necessary
steps in the processes.
A collaborative working group with prime
contractors and suppliers recognized that
additional steps are needed, with a focus on
process robustness to reduce the occurrence
of preventable handling issues1:
Instances such as a solar panel being
damaged by a crane or a locking bolt being
stripped from overtorquing are examples of
incidents that could have been avoided with
appropriate preventive controls in place.
The best ways to avoid handling issues
are to eliminate process vulnerabilities
and ensure consistent responsibilities,
expectations, and accountability. Proper
monitoring by quality and/or safety
engineers as part of the process should be
Volume 6, Issue 1 / August 3, 2015
• Blame the Process, not the Personnel
- Root cause determination and corrective
action should focus on failure of the
process to prevent undesired outcomes
- Process enhancements should include
applicable checklists and appropriate
documentation, equipment, and
trained personnel
• Empower the Employee
- Train technicians to report problems, risk,
or issues early; management should reinforce and facilitate (streamline/standardize
reporting process and paperwork)
• Standardize the Build Process
- Ensure manufacturing process induces
no confusion or ambiguous choices
associated with proper safety gear
and transport equipment
• Eliminate tools not needed to perform
the operation, and eliminate process
steps or unnecessary movement of
hardware that might introduce added
handling issues
- Look for opportunities to lean the process
• Ensure proper monitoring by quality and/
or safety engineers as part of the process
commensurate with the value of the product
Space vehicle manufacturers are generally
dealing with very costly product with small
production runs. The current acquisition
environment emphasizes cost reduction
and streamlining, but even the smallest
escapes can have huge impacts due to the
low-productivity nature of space vehicle
manufacturing. Minimizing handling
incidences will enable increased productivity
through focused process effectiveness, with
resultant reduced program costs.
TOR-2015-00766, Joint Space Quality Improvement
Council (SQIC)/Space Supplier Council (SSC)
November 12, 2014.
1
For more information, contact Gail Johnson-Roth,
310.336.0030, gail.a.johnson-roth@aero.org.
Page 2
Variation
Management of First Article
Key Characteristics Inspections
DID YOU KNOW?
New SAE Standard for Manufacturing Management
SAE International recently released
AS6500 for Manufacturing
Management Program, a
replacement for MIL-STD-1528A
that was canceled in the mid1990s as a result of acquisition
reform. The standard is intended
for all programs with manufacturing content and is applicable
for all phases of the acquisition
lifecycle. The space industry has
been continually plagued by
handling and workmanship
issues. While the AS9100
Quality Management Systems —
Aerospace Requirement addresses
some of these issues, the AS6500
encompasses planning, design,
supplier management, operations,
and risk management and is
intended for use on all programs
with manufacturing content. The
standard also includes elements
of AS9102, AS9103, AS5553,
and J1739.
AS9100
Quality
Management
Systems —
Aerospace Req’t
AS9103
For more information, contact Terita
Norton, The Aerospace Corporation,
571.304.7840, terita.r.norton@
aero.org.
AS9102
Failure Mode Effects
and Corrective Actions
(FMECAs)
J1739
AS6500
Manufacturing
Management
Program
Counterfeit Parts
Prevention
AS5553
• Manufacturing: The marriage of the
Digital Tapestry and new manufacturing
technologies — like advanced composites
and 3-D printing — is dramatically
reducing production time and cost while
improving product quality.
• Assembly and Test: We can continue
to streamline processes with our visualization tools, such as developing simpler
ways to transport space vehicles and
optimize factory layouts.
• Operations and Sustainment: We can
leverage data to produce visual, intuitive
operating and maintenance procedures
superior to text-based manuals.
Our Quality organization benefits from
these threads in numerous ways. For
example, we reduced manufacturing and
inspection costs of propulsion core
components by 55 percent. We accomplished
this by implementing an automated tube
bender and digital inspection techniques.
This allowed realtime comparison of tube
dimensions to the engineering 3-D model.
Quality engages earlier in the product
development lifecycle through high-fidelity
design reviews and insertion of critical
inspection characteristics. This enables
Page 3
PHOTO COURTESY OF LOCKHEED MARTIN
WEAVING THE QUALITY THREAD from page 1
Additive manufacturing machine at a Lockheed Martin facility.
a higher level of product verification to
customer requirements. Using 3-D models,
we can use virtual reality to examine both a
single product and how it fits into a system.
During the visualization process, we use
video and sensors to verify conformity as
the component is being printed or created.
For 3-D-printed primary load-bearing structures, industry is building a material property
database, processing guidelines, robust
nondestructive inspection methods, and
qualification and product digital acceptance
criteria to facilitate insertion/acceptance of
additively manufactured technology.
Building complex space and missile
systems requires engineering, supply chain,
production, and quality teams to work
seamlessly. When we enhance their ability
to collaborate and move seamlessly from
one step to the next, we transform the
enterprise into a more agile and affordable
business. We are weaving the Digital
Tapestry and transforming the way we
do business.
Volume 6, Issue 1 / August 3, 2015
MISSION ASSURANCE from page 1
but for all national space contractors and vendors. An additional
benefit reported by participants in this workshop is the network of
experts that attendees have access to long after the workshop is over.
Todd Nygren, General Manager of Systems Engineering Division at
The Aerospace Corporation, opened the meeting by reminding the
attendees of the value of the working sessions and encouraged
everyone to roll up their sleeves to dig deep into the technical
details. The workshop closed with an overview of each of the 2015
MAIW products and two keynote addresses. The RF Breakdown
team reported that their 2014 and 2015 products will be the starting
point of discussion for a newly formed AIAA technical committee.
The Design Review Process Improvements team shared analysis of
design escapes showing the importance of engineering models and
correct reviewer skillsets. The Quality Inspection Deployment team
introduced a decision support tool that implements the guidance
developed. The ASIC/FPGA Malicious Attack team provided
guidance to mitigate ASIC/FPGA circuit attack threats in the
design and development phases.
As the first keynote speaker, Wanda Sigur, Vice President and GM of
Civil Space, Lockheed Martin Corporation, shared her perspectives
on mission assurance challenges and potential solutions. She stated
that the affordability conversations should also include mission
success. She added that as a community we should evaluate whether
constrained budgets prevent innovation and whether reducing the
workforce or using less skilled talent really helps to manage cost.
Sigur said there should be a return to basics for both mission
success and affordability. Verification and validation should include
fault-tolerant failsafe testing and analysis, and that the tools should
have robust process controls.
David Madden, Executive Director, Space and Missile Systems Center,
delivered the closing keynote. Madden stated that we can’t function
without space, and that it is integrated in everything that we do. He
forecasted further consolidation, globalization, and competition in
the industry. Madden cautioned against overly focusing on cost and
schedule and neglecting risk management. He sees design maturity
and the supply chain as the two primary challenges facing the
industry. Technical capability may be outpacing our mission assurance
processes and requires partnering for success, which is why forums
like MAIW are so important, he added.
For more information, contact Jacqueline Wyrwitzke, 310.336.3418,
jacqueline.m.wyrwitzke@aero.org.
RECENT GUIDANCE AND RELATED MEDIA
SPECIAL REPORTS
Space Quality Improvement Council —
April 2015 by T. Norton; TOR-2015-02289;
OK’d for USGC
Radiation and Charging Hazards in
Near-Earth Space by J. Fennell et al.;
TOR-2015-02205; OK’d for public release
Mission Assurance Technical Baseline
Assessments by W. Tosney; ATR-2014-02320;
OK’d for public release
Mission Assurance Baseline (MAB) Version
2.7 by J. Perry; ATR-2015-00618; OK’d for USGC
MIL-HDBK 340B Application Guidelines
for Electronic Unit Test Section of
TR-RS-2014-00016: Battery Peculiar
Requirements by M. Wasz; ATR-2015-00939;
OK’d for public release
Application Guidelines for Electronic Unit
Life Test Section of TR-RS-2014-00016, Test
Requirements for Launch, Upper Stage,
and Space Vehicles by B. McCarthy;
ATR-2015-01252; OK’d for public release
Application Guidelines for Pressure
Components, Pressure Systems, Leak
and Pressure Test Requirements in
TR-RS-2014-00016 by M. Mueller;
ATR-2015-01994; OK’d for public release
TECHNICAL ASSESSMENTS
The Effect of Radiation on the Mechanical
Properties of Various Types of Rohacell
Materials by R. Zaldivar et al.; TOR-2015-00979;
OK’d for USGC
Proactive Infrastructure Resource
Monitoring and Management in Cloud
Environments: Experimentation and
Evaluation by E. Shokri et al.; TOR-2015-00862;
OK’d for USGC
Design Advisory DA-2015-01: Design
Propulsion System for Flow Verification
by P. Cheng; TOR-2015-01964; OK’d for USGC
Protect Secondary Circuits From Disruption
Caused by Ground Shifts by P. Cheng;
TOR-2015-02049; OK’d for USGC
How Long Does It Take to Develop and
Launch Government Satellite Systems?
by L. Davis; ATR-2015-00535; OK’d for USGC
Design Advisory 2015-01 Design Propulsion
System for Flow Test Verification by
P. Cheng; TOR-2015-01964; OK’d for public release
Design Advisory 2015-02 Protect Secondary
Circuits Against Disruption Caused by
Ground Shifts by P. Cheng; TOR-2015-02049;
OK’d for USGC
=======
USGC = U.S. gov’t agencies and their contractors
For reprints of these documents, except as noted,
please contact library.mailbox@aero.org.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
FALL 2015
Oct. 20–22 — NSISC Space INFOSEC Technical
Aug. 10–13 — Space and Missile Defense
Workshop, El Segundo, CA
Symposium, Huntsville, AL
Sept. 22 — Space Supplier Council,
Oct. 26–28 — MILCOM,Tampa, FL
Oct. 27–29 — Aerospace Testing Seminar,
El Segundo, CA
Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 6 — Manufacturing Problem Prevention
Nov. 19 — Joint Space Quality Improvement
Program (MP3), El Segundo, CA
Council/Space Supplier Council, Chantilly, VA
Oct. 6–7 — Spacecraft Anomalies and Failures
Nov. 19–20 — Mission Assurance Summit,
(SCAF) Technical Exchange 2015, Chantilly, VA
Chantilly, VA
Page 4
GETTING IT RIGHT
The Quarterly Newsletter of Mission Assurance
Getting It Right is published every three months by the
Corporate Chief Engineer’s Office, Systems Planning,
Engineering, and Quality, The Aerospace Corporation.
Direct questions and comments to gettingitright@
aero.org. All trademarks, service marks, and trade
names are the property of their respective owners.
ATR-2015-01752
Volume 6, Issue 1 / August 3, 2015