NASA/Headquarters Acquisition Division, Code CW, 300E Street SW, Washington, DC 20546

A -- SPACE SHUTTLE SYSTEM UPGRADES SOL RFI-HQ-OSF-01 DUE 043097 POC Stephen S Oswald, Deputy Assoc Administrator For Space Shuttle Requirements, Phone (202) 358-1200, Fax (202) 358-2848, Email soswald@hq.nasa.gov -- Russell Bardos, Deputy For Space Shuttle Requirements, Phone (202) 358-4504, Fax (202) 358-2848, Email rbardos@hq.nasa.gov WEB: Click here for the latest information about this notice, http://procurement.nasa.gov/EPS/HQ/date.html#RFI-HQ-OSF-01. E-MAIL: Stephen S Oswald, soswald@hq.nasa.gov. OSF REQUIREMENTS FOR SPACE SHUTTLE SYSTEM UPGRADES. Purpose. To identify top-level requirements which will govern the incorporation of major upgrades to the Space Shuttle system providing safe, continuous, and affordable operations to 2012 and beyond. Background/Rationale. The Space Shuttle program strategy is founded on the premise that safety, reliability, and supportability improvements must continue to be made in Shuttle systems. These upgrades will enable safe and efficient Shuttle operations during the Space Station era while providing a robust testbed for Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) technologies and other customers. Until such time that a next generation vehicle is proven and available, the Space Shuttle is our Nation s only means of human access to space. This document establishes the programmatic requirements necessary to assure the safe, continuous, robust and cost effective operation of the Space Shuttle. It also lays the groundwork for the timely incorporation of major upgrades which willprovide a significantly improved Shuttle system through the year 2012 and beyond. Strategy. The Space Shuttle Upgrade Program will be planned and implemented from a systemwide perspective. Upgrade packages will be integrated and prioritized across all flight and ground systems, insuring that individual upgrades are compatible and that their impact is assessed across the entire program. Selection of new upgrades will support the following prioritized Shuttle program goals: 1) improve Space Shuttle system safety; 2) support the Space Shuttle program manifest; 3) improve Space Shuttle system supportability and/or reliability; and 4) reduce Space Shuttle system operations costs. Space Shuttle Program Upgrades. The Space Shuttle system upgrades program will institutionalize the process of continual improvement to the Space Shuttle system with emphasis on SAFETY. New technologies will be coordinated within the Human Exploration and Development of Space (HEDS) Enterprise, to capture common technology developments while meeting the current Shuttle manifest. Upgrades will be categorized into four phases: Phase I -- Projects which significantly improve system safety and provide performance enhancements in support of the Space Station. These improvements are currently fully funded and under way with final implementation planned by the year 2000. Phase II -- Selected high value upgrades which significantly enhance system safety or provide supportability/reliability and which can be implemented at relatively low cost without impacting the flight manifest. The continuous improvement process is already underway and will continue for the operational life of the Space Shuttle system. Phase III -- Significantly more comprehensive, high-value system upgrades which utilize state-of-the-art technology and provide safety, supportability/reliability, and/or cost reductions. Candidate designs in this phase would maintain the current Shuttle mold lines and system/subsystem interfaces. Development costs will likely be higher than Phase II improvements, and some schedule impacts are possible. These major system changes will require a definition period with the potential for the development of prototype systems. This definition activity leading to the selection of upgrade candidates will begin in FY 1997. Phase IV -- Major high value and higher cost upgrades which also provide system safety, supportability/reliability, and/or cost reductions. Candidate designs in this phase would significantly change configuration. Development costs will be higher than Phase III and implementation into the fleet must be carefully planned to minimize the impact to flight rate capability/ manifests. Management Responsibility. The Associate Administrator for Space Flight has overall responsibility and authority for the Space Shuttle System Upgrade Program. He will establish programmatic requirements, allocate available funds and review program performance and metrics. Implementation authority and responsibility will be delegated to the Lead Center Director for the program. Programmatic Requirements. Safety/Reliability: 1) increase existing levels of safety. Reduces the occurrence of ground-related Class A incidents 50 percent by FY 2002 and an additional 50 percent by FY 2007; 2) continually reduce the number of hazards (flight and/or ground) with a target of 25 percent reduction by FY 2007; 3) continually reduce the number of Criticality 1 failure modes (flight or ground) with a target of 25 percent reduction by FY 2007; and 4) continually decrease the probability of a catastrophic loss of vehicle from the current 1/148 to a target of 1/250 by FY 2007 and 1/500 by FY 2012. All candidate safety/reliability upgrades will also be evaluated for risk impact from a ground processing perspective through identification, characterization, and prioritization of all significant operational safety and processing issues/impacts. Each safety/reliability upgrade selected for implementation must provide a metric to quantify the significant safety/reliability improvementof the system element or component being changed, including impacts to ease of maintenance and maintenance burden. Manifest / Mission Supportability: 1) insure that the capability is in place to increase the number of flights to 10 flights per year by the end of FY 2002 and 15 flights per year by the end of FY 2007; 2) insure on time launch 90 percent of the time by FY 2002. On time launch is defined as within 7 days of the launch date established at the Delta Launch Site Flow Review (Typically at L-4 months); 3) insure successful mission performance for 90 percent of the mission objectives by FY 2002; and 4) to accommodate customers requiring shorter payload processing periods, reduce flight preparation cycle time by 50 percent by FY 2002. Cost Reduction: 1) by the end of FY 2002 achieve a $4500/pound cost-to-orbit, normalized to 28.5 degrees at 200 nautical miles (in FY 1996 dollars) based on the desired flight rate of 10 flights per year; and 2) by the end of FY 2007 achieve a $2500/pound cost-to-orbit, normalized to 28.5 degrees at 200 nautical miles (in FY 1996 dollars) based on the desired flight rate of 15 flights per year. Note: These cost/pound targets may be achieved through a combination of overall program operations cost reductions, flight rate increases, and performance enhancements. Ramp up to 15 flights per year will require additional infrastructure and assumes availability of Liquid Flyback Boosters. Implementation Guidelines. The majority of upgrades will be justified on the basis of some combination of the following four categories: Safety, Manifest Supportability, Space Shuttle Maintainability/ Reliability, or Cost Reduction. The major category which supports an upgrade must be justified as follows: 1) safety upgrades based on quantitative assessment of risk reduction; 2) manifest supportability upgrades based on obsolescence avoidance, downstream cost avoidance, and ability to meet the projected manifests; 3) Space Shuttle maintainability/reliability upgrades to include reduction in turnaround time, reduced line replaceable unit (LRU) failure rates or reduction of spares required; and 4) cost reduction/avoidance upgrades based on achieving a recoupment of investment costs. Synergy of Space Shuttle upgrades with other NASA Strategic Enterprises, US Government Agencies or International Partners is also an implementing guideline. NASA is seeking feedback and comments from industry concerning the thoroughness of the requirements document, any missing information, and a sense of how implementable the requirements are, as currently stated. The description/synopsis is for information and planning purposes and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government, nor will the Government pay for the information solicited. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the review, however, a formal, approved program document will be provided to all respondents to this RFI. (0090)

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