Space Systems Technologies

Case Analysis:
Your company, Space Systems Technologies (SST), has the mission of assembling
commercial and military launch vehicles. SST does no fabrication, it simply provides
customers specialized assembly expertise, brings the prefabricated parts of the
expendable launch vehicle together, and though an assembly process delivers a
completed launch vehicle to the launch facility to be mated with the propulsion system
prior to launch. SST Corporation assembles many different launch vehicles for various
customers who design and launch the rockets but lack the necessary facilities and
expertise in rocket assembly (see Launch Vehicles figure). SST is submitting a proposal
in response to the Ansari X-Prize Competition as a sub-contractor to Scaled
Composites. SST will assemble the different competitor rockets and ship to Scaled
Composites who will conduct engine mating, launch, and test data collection.
Your vice president for engineering has to decide whether to incorporate these X-Prize
rocket assembly projects into the existing program of launch vehicle assembly or, have
a separate program or, consolidate the effort into a project portfolio. You have been
asked to research the use of programs and portfolios with projects and provide your
recommend course of action. Consider the advantages/disadvantages of:
•?Incorporating the X-Prize vehicles into the existing program of launch vehicle
assembly
•?Establishing the X-Prize vehicles into a standalone program or,
•?Establishing a portfolio of X-Prize vehicles
Your paper will provide a short understanding of the situation and problem as it pertains
to the mission of Space Systems Technologies, an analysis of each of the options with
cited references, a synthesized recommended course of action, and the evaluation of
that conclusion from a source reference not already used in your analysis of the
problem.
Please go to the X-Prize website for further information on the X-Prize Competition. Be
sure to focus only on the cargo launch vehicles that are part of this competition.
Directions for submitting your paper on your recommended course of action toyour VP on how to group the proposed rocket assembly projects