NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

KSC Next Gen Site ___Questions? Comments?

Home Home or <previous model

LLEGO - Launch & Landing Effects Ground Operations model

An Exploration Systems Analysis & Technology Assessment (ESATA) project

2008

Papers & Presentations ¦ The Project ¦ Contact

LLEGO is a model for understanding Kennedy Space Center (KSC) launch and landing recurring operations costs for human space flight. This function is also referred to at times as "ground processing", "ground operations", "the ground operations element (GOE)", "launch and landing project", "check-out", "processing", "launch site ops", "launch ops" or as just plain "ground ops" for the United States human space flight program. Currently this function is specific to the ground operations for the Space Shuttle Space Transportation System (STS) within the Space Shuttle Program (SSP). The system to follow the Shuttle consists of the crewed Orion spacecraft atop an Ares I launch vehicle and the cargo/un-crewed Ares V launch vehicle within the Constellation (Cx) program. The Cx flight and ground systems build on many elements of the existing Shuttle flight and ground hardware as well as existing organizations and processes. The LLEGO model builds on past ground operations research, modeling, data, and experience in estimating for future programs. Rather than simply provide estimates, however, LLEGO’s main purpose is in providing insight that can take relatively complex relationships among functions and relate improvements in these functions to their drivers. Drivers include flight system complexity and reliability, operations concept and supply chain factors. All these factors together define the operability and potential improvements for any future system.

Direct hands-on labor is the beginning of any understanding about any spacecraft and launch vehicles affordability or productive potential for delivering people or cargo to and from space. Direct hands-on labor is, however, merely the tip of the iceberg of other necessary functions and resources needed to actually launch a system. These other functions build on a set of practices, approaches, policies, support roles, business functions, enablers and even more in-direct resources.

Key questions include:

  • What is the relationship between specific operability features in a design and direct hands-on work?
  • What is the nature of the extended set of organizations, policies, and practices beneath the very visible hands-on work of a ground operations contractor technician?
  • What is the relationship of the designs operability to the realm that lies beneath?
  • How can we design with both improved operability in mind for the hardware as well as with operable processes, practices and technology in mind for the organizational structures that carry out the support functions?

Papers & Presentations:

The Project:

  • Created a model that provides linkages between the what, how and why of Launch and Landing costs and flow times, reflecting on future affordability and responsiveness for space launch, with an emphasis on the NASA Exploration architecture.
  • Has created a capability to quantitatively analyze what drives expenses and flow-time.
  • Will communicate insights from analysis to key decision makers and stakeholders.
  • Will quantify potential paths to improvements in affordability and flow-time productivity.
    • Implement a design change? What is the effect?
    • Implement a business or policy change? What is the effect?
    • Sensitivity "what-if" analysis; change items, co-relate degrees to effects.

As a sub-task, this project also:

  • Developed a Safety, Reliability and Maintainability Design Development and Requirements Balancing Tool. more>>>

The Team & Acknowledgements:

  • NASA Kennedy Space Center
    • Edgar Zapata, Principal Investigator & COTR, KSC
    • Mike Galluzzi, Shuttle Program Office, Supply Chain Manager
  • Acknowledgements: This project was funded by ESMD Level 1 as part of the ESR&T area
    • Doug Craig, ESMD Directorate Integration Office (DIO)
    • Pat Troutman, LaRC and Bill Cirillo, LaRC leads Explorations Systems Analysis and Technology Assessment area “11B” from ESAS

Milestones:

  • Project duration: July 19, 2006 to July 19, 2007
  • Project Phase I summary presentation, KSC internal, July 25, 2007
  • Initial analysis use in support of NASA, Jan. 30, 2008.

Contacts, Further Information, Distribution:

The LLEGO tool is freely available to government, industry and academia upon request. Please review all "models" in considering any need for a copy. Please state name and organization with the request.

  • LLEGO will have 2 versions, a Government Only and a Public version.

LLEGO Ph. II is evolving the tool as well as using it. LLEGO Ph. II will result in a new configuration.

_____________________

Also see:

_____________________

Website Contact: Edgar Zapata, NASA Kennedy Space Center