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Fredie Douglas, III, NASA Stennis Space Center |
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Date: August 14, 2003
Time: 1:00pm
Speaker:Freddie Douglas, III, Manager, Systems Management Office, NASA Stennis Space Center
Subject: "Customer's Perspective of Space Launch Systems Development Process"
The space launch system framework brings to the forefront the implications of multiple stakeholders, market conditions, the convoluted manner in which public sector programs are conceived and implemented, and the perceived smoother and focused manner for private sector efforts. In the public sector case this process is drawn out and typically, the financing structure does not support obtaining the overall best costs. The inter-relationship of demands, brought by various stakeholders serviced by the Public Sector, result in reinforcing behavioral loops that make it virtually impossible to satisfy the needs of the Public Sector enough to ensure global competitiveness for the private sector. The public sector has taken steps to ensure that regulatory and infrastructure capabilities are competitive enablers. In addition, the Public Sector also focuses on reducing the cost-per-pound-to-orbit as a measure of competitive effectiveness or advantage. However, the appropriateness of this measure changes as the customer/supplier relationship changes from Public Sector, to launch service provider, to satellite developer, to the General Public. Measures for these relationships move from cost-per-pound-to-orbit, to providing assurances of affordability, profitability, reliability, capability, and availability to maximizing benefit from a multi-billion dollar revenue stream.
In the program/project Preparation Phase, these measures manifest themselves in terms of implementation strategies based on market conditions and timing. Lean focuses on value from the customer’s perspective; for this work, its definition is hypothesized to be service oriented and embodies service management features of tangible and intangible elements. Leveraging this definition, service embodies the act, perceived quality and cost to the customer: the same attributes that epitomize the amorphous and dynamic formulation environment associated with the Preparation Phase. This hypothesized expression of value is verified through case study of cancelled launch vehicle programs, analysis of system performance parameters that drive launch system costs, congressional records, interviews with industry participants, surveys and other artifacts from other industries that develop complex systems (i.e., shipbuilding, offshore exploration and cargo aircraft).
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