NewSpace Systems Engineering

289 Pages·2021·10.579 MB·English

by  Ignacio Chechile

Ignacio Chechile
NewSpace
Systems
Engineering
NewSpace Systems Engineering
Ignacio Chechile
NewSpace Systems
Engineering
IgnacioChechile
Helsinki,Finland
ISBN978-3-030-66897-6 ISBN978-3-030-66898-3 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-66898-3
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ToLeo,theonlysystemIhavecontributed to
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Preface
I have mixed feelings at the thought of adding yet another book of Systems Engi-
neeringtothebookshelfofSystemsEngineering.Ifeelthereareplenty,perhapstoo
many.ItsoothesmymindthatthisbookisnotactuallyaboutSystemsEngineering
inthesamewaymostofthebooksyouwillfindaround,butaboutNewSpaceSystem
Engineering.And,ironically,bysayingthisIjointhem:theyallstatetobedifferent
thantherest.
IfIcoulddefineNewSpaceinoneline,Iwouldsay:NewSpaceistheartofcutting
corners. Engineering small spacecraft is a good problem to have, but not an easy
one.Designinganddevelopingspacesystemsisaproblemandknowledge-intensive
activity.Inreality,whenyoudoNewSpaceyoudonothavetheluxuryofdealingwith
oneorjustafewproblems,butwithanetworkofinterconnectedproblems.Russell
Ackoff coined the term “messes” (Ackoff, 1981), which are complex systems of
interactingproblems.NewSpaceisaboutdealingwithmesses.
Thereisalotof“analysisoftheobvious”inthisbook.Itakesometimetothink
aboutsomethingsweneverreallystoptoanalyzealot,forexamplelifecycles.This
book is a sort of eulogy of early stage organizations; for they are truly something.
Theyarelikebombsquads,nervouslytryingtocuttherightcablewhilelookingand
the clock ticking, of course without really knowing which cable to cut. The latent
chanceoftotaldestructionisalwaysaroundthecorner.Hence,NewSpaceearlystage
projectsrequirecarefulconsiderationofthosesomewhatobviousthings,sincethey
get little attention at the beginning and they slowly fester until they become too
cumbersome to be tackled. NewSpace projects must streamline their engineering
practice in ruthlessly minimalistic ways: runways are short; i.e. the bomb ticks.
NewSpace organizations cannot spend their energy on things that add no value. If
they do so, they will find themselves out of the game very soon. An early stage
startup is the epitome of uncertainty: there are so many things to define, to learn
and to understand. From business plan to the technology, to office daily activities.
No wonder most of them never make it beyond infancy. Hopefully, this book will
helpsomestayinthegame.Or,fornewactorsenteringthegame,tobeawareofthe
challengestheywillsurelyfindaheadoftheroad.Pertinentistosaythatmostofthe
vii
viii Preface
bookistargetedtoandinspiredbyveryearlystagesmallNewSpacecompaniesat
equallyearlystagesoftheirdesignprocess,developingspacecraftofdifferentkinds.
IftheoccasionalreaderbelongstoaNewSpaceorganizationmakingcomponentsor
bitsandpartsofspacecraft,you(luckily)dealwithalowercomplexitycomparedwith
whatIcoverinthenextchapters.Youmaystillfindsomepartsuseful;justtailorthe
contextaccordingly.Ifthereaderismoreadvancedintheorganizationalanddesign
process,forexampleheorsheispartofascale-uporabiggerspaceorganization,
themyriadofmoreclassicSystemsEngineeringbookscanbeavaluableinsight.
But,howdoyougetyourselfinthetroubleofjoiningaNewSpaceproject?Let
me guess: you are a founder, you have a great idea which has, in your view, great
market potential. It is about Earth observation, or data collection, or connectivity.
You strongly believe it will make a difference, but you have little clue what to do
next,becauseyouhavenotdonespacebefore.Or,youareanengineerwhoisabout
toquityourcurrentjobinabigspacecompanyorsimilarandyouareplanningto
joinaNewSpacecompany,beingintotalfearaboutthestepyouareabouttotake.
Maybeyouareaninvestorconsideringtheideaofinvestingyourhard-earnedcapital
insomeNewSpacerelatedproject.Oryouareanoutsider,curioushowNewSpace
works.Hopefully,thisbookwillprovideallofyouwithsomeanswers.Notallthe
answers for sure. Perhaps in the end you will have more questions than before. If
thatisthecase,Ileaveareasonablydecentcollectionofreferencesforyoutodive
deeperasneeded.
IproposedmyselftowritethebookIwouldhavelovedtohaveinmyhandswhen
IstartedworkinginNewSpace5yearsago.Ialsowantedtowriteabookthatwould
notkeepthereaderbusyfortoolong,orgetherorhimboredtooquickly;Iwantedto
keepitconcise,butImighthavefailed;itcreptquicklyoutofboundaries.Hopefully,
chaptersarereasonablyself-containedinawaythereadercanskipthemaccording
totheschedule.Iwantedtoprovokesomethoughts:Imighthaveaccomplishedmy
goal,ornot,it’sgoingtobeyouwhowilldecide.Thisisneitheradoctoralthesisnor
ascientificarticle,sopleasehaveacriticaleyeandrelyonthereferencesformore
detailsontopicsIhaveonlybrieflycovered.
So, what type of book is this? Is it a technical book? A management book? A
design book? A compilation of lessons learned? I guess it is a combination of all
that together. It is a bit of a hybrid book where you will find different things. I
trytorevisitsomepreestablishedpracticeswesometimesperformabitrobotically
withoutthinkingorquestioning.Ivisittopicssuchasengineeringhabits,modularity,
conceptual design, testing, and at the end of the book I talk about the bullshit that
sometimesengulfstheNewSpaceworld.Takethisbook,ultimately,asacollection
of thoughts. I have, for sure, put my best effort in writing it; hundreds of liters of
coffeewereconsumedintheprocessinmanyplacesaroundHelsinkiandathome,
duetotheCOVID-19pandemic.Theoutcomemaystillbemediocreatbest,itwill
bethereaders’roletosay.Anyfeedbacktolessenitsmediocrity(ifpossible)will
bemorethanwelcome.
Preface ix
Asafinalthoughtforthispreface:veryearlystageNewSpaceorganizationsare
liketightropewalkers;onewrongstepandyousurelygodown.Theirbankaccounts
are leaking by the minute, they burn money and struggle, swimming in a sea of
uncertaintyandfacingdisbelief.Atthebeginning,theylackthemostbasicstructure
suchasHRdepartment,orbasicallyanydepartmentoutsideengineering.Youmust
beabitoutofyourmindtojointhesetypesofplaces,butatthesametimeyoumust
beoutofyourmindnottryingatleastonceinyourlife.
Helsinki,Finland IgnacioChechile
October2020
Acknowledgements
IshallacknowledgefirstalltheborderlinebankruptSmallandMediumEnterprises
I worked for during my younger years back in Buenos Aires,for they have taught
mesomeinvaluablelessonsIapplyeveryday.First,theytaughtmetosurvivewith
whatIhadathandinsteadofwaitingforpanaceasthatwillnevercome.Andsecond,
theytaughtme,perhapsthehardway,thattrueengineeringisaboutmakingthings
workinthefieldandnotaboutmakingpromisestheywillwork,andthatthemoral
responsibility of the engineer spans all the way from ideation to retirement of the
systemswecreate.Despitethenot-so-greatsalariesandthehugestressofstudying
andworkingatthesametimebackinthosedays,Idonotregretasingledayofhaving
workedthere.Iamproudlyformattedbytheidiosyncrasiesofoneofthebackbones
ofeveryeconomyintheworld:TheSmallandMediumEnterprise.
IshallacknowledgetheArgentinianfreeeducationsystemforteachingme(abso-
lutelyforfree)allIknow,allthewayfromkindergartentoUniversity:Iamafull
productoffreeeducation;hencethisbookalsois.Oftencriticized,thefreeeduca-
tionsystemremainsoneofmycountry’sbiggestassets.Educationshallstayfreefor
everyone,forever.
I shall acknowledge my parents Carlos and Alicia and my siblings Ramiro and
Solforsupportingmethroughoutmycareerwithallitstwistsandturnswhich,long
story,havetakenmequitefarawayfromthem.Itisnoteasytobethisfar,buttheir
supportmakesiteasier.
Last,butdefinitelynotleast,IshallacknowledgemywifeKaisaforaccompanying
everycrazyideaI(frequently)comeupwith,includingthisbook.Whoknowswhat
iscomingnext.
xi
Contents
1 TheHitchhiker’sGuidetoNewSpace ............................ 1
1.1 TheBigSystem ........................................... 3
1.2 AreStartupsSteamMachines? .............................. 5
1.3 SystemsThinking ......................................... 9
1.3.1 HabitsofaSystemsThinker .......................... 11
1.3.2 EngineeringSystemsThinking ........................ 12
1.4 OutofContextSystemsEngineering ......................... 15
1.5 SustainableSpacebyDesign ................................ 17
1.5.1 WhatIsSustainableSpace? .......................... 19
1.5.2 ChallengestoSpaceSustainability .................... 20
1.5.3 TheCostofSpaceSafety ............................ 23
1.5.4 DesignConsiderationsforSustainableSpace ........... 25
References ..................................................... 32
2 FromtheWhiteboardtoSpace .................................. 35
2.1 TheBusinessFactor ....................................... 37
2.1.1 PrototypetheBusiness ............................... 39
2.1.2 TheBusinessBlueprint .............................. 39
2.2 TheSocialFactor—ConnectingBrainsTogether ............... 42
2.2.1 TheEngineeringCulture ............................. 46
2.2.2 ButWhatIsCulture? ................................ 47
2.3 TheTechnicalFactor ....................................... 48
2.4 TheBreakdownMess ...................................... 53
2.5 WorkBreakdownStructure ................................. 54
2.6 Requirements ............................................. 59
2.6.1 Must-BeRequirements .............................. 60
2.6.2 PerformanceRequirements ........................... 61
2.6.3 AttractiveRequirements ............................. 62
2.7 LifeCycleCost ........................................... 62
2.8 Proof-of-Concepts ......................................... 64
xiii