NASA’s failing infrastructure

VAB: Fix the roof!

The recent safety report by NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Board notes that NASA’s infrastructure is deteriorating and poses a safety threat.

Over 80 percent of NASA facilities are beyond their design life, and annual maintenance is underfunded.1 Facilities continue to degrade and facilities failures are starting to impact missions and have safety implications Agency-wide. Evidence for this can be seen in the increasing number of small fires, key equipment losses through failures in material handling and transportation facilities, and in the “weak signals” that we observe in current safety reports. The infrastructure used to launch complex vehicles into space must be reviewed and maintained down to the smallest component to remain safe. In the past, one of NASA’s goals was “ten healthy Centers.” A considerable investment in facility maintenance, repair, and replacement is needed for this goal to be achieved. This may be unrealistic in the current economic climate. If funding is not available, NASA should consider consolidating its programs and efforts at fewer Centers so that its activities may be safely continued at the remaining facilities. This planning needs to be part of a conscious and deliberate facilities strategy.

This brings to mind the leaky roof of the Vehicle Assembly Building—which was used to assemble and prepare Saturn rockets for flights, is currently used for shuttles, and will be used by NASA of its successor to the shuttle.

If it’s still standing.