Comments on: Collins reportedly in the process of canceling its NASA spacesuit contract

By: SamE

SamE — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 14:16:31 +0000

Failure to plan schedule and cost is not an engineering failure.

By: GeorgeC

GeorgeC — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 09:51:15 +0000

The Apollo suit project back in the day needed a bid from a true outsider with an out of box concept based on the Playtex Bra.

By: Jeff Wright

Jeff Wright — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 05:11:55 +0000

American engineering losses stem from Ayn Rand types like Boeing shareholders, Jack Welsh–folks who want to kill NASA centers, etc.

Elon is just today’s Lorenzo de Medici–a patron of spaceflight–not a profit-obsessed suit.

By: mkent

mkent — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 01:42:21 +0000

”It’s not 100% clear that Collins is actually going to be withdrawing from the spacesuit program…”

It wasn’t at first, but a statement from NASA today clarified the matter. Collins had received two task orders on their multi-billion-dollar contract: 1) a $97 million task order to develop a spacesuit for the ISS, and 2) a $5 million task order to study adapting their ISS suit for use on the moon. These task orders are being stopped.

”Most people are assuming that NASA will choose to let them withdraw and then re-bid the project, with the possibility that Collins will be allowed to re-bid.”

That may not happen. Reports today are that NASA is happy with Axiom’s progress on their half of the contract. Axiom also has two task orders: 1) to develop a lunar spacesuit, and 2) to study adapting their lunar suit to ISS. Depending on the results of the study, I could see NASA just awarding them a third task order under the existing contract to develop the ISS suit, perhaps after the lunar suit CDR.

So this contract may end up looking less like COTS and more like CCtCap: as Boeing fell more and more behind NASA just added more and more task orders to SpaceX instead of holding a new competition.

By: David Eastman

David Eastman — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 16:40:06 +0000

It’s not 100% clear that Collins is actually going to be withdrawing from the spacesuit program, the few public statements have been very much “We’re withdrawing UNLESS we get more money and time.” Most people are assuming that NASA will choose to let them withdraw and then re-bid the project, with the possibility that Collins will be allowed to re-bid. Of course at this point, I could see either Axiom or SpaceX making a much more attractive bid. Even though neither has a suit that meets the current requirements, both of them seem to be closer than Collins has managed so far.