NASA/SP-2014-3705 NASA Space Flight Program and Project Management Handbook NASA STI Program ... in Profile Since its founding, NASA has been dedicated to the • CONFERENCE PUBLICATION. Collected pa- advancement of aeronautics and space science. The pers from scientific and technical conferences, NASA scientific and technical information (STI) symposia, seminars, or other meetings spon- program plays a key part in helping NASA maintain this sored or co-sponsored by NASA. important role. • SPECIAL PUBLICATION. Scientific, technical, The NASA STI program operates under the auspices or historical information from NASA programs, of the Agency Chief Information Officer. It collects, projects, and missions, often concerned with organizes, provides for archiving, and disseminates subjects having substantial public interest. NASA’s STI. The NASA STI program provides access to the NTRS® and its public interface, the NASA • TECHNICAL TRANSLATION. English-lan- Technical Reports Server, thus providing one of the guage translations of foreign scientific and tech- largest collections of aeronautical and space science STI nical material pertinent to NASA’s mission. in the world. Results are published in both non-NASA channels and by NASA in the NASA STI Report Series, Specialized services also include organizing and which includes the following report types: publishing research results, distributing specialized research announcements and feeds, providing • TECHNICAL PUBLICATION. Reports of com- information desk and personal search support, and pleted research or a major significant phase of re- enabling data exchange services. search that present the results of NASA Programs and include extensive data or theoretical analysis. For more information about the NASA STI program, Includes compilations of significant scientific and see the following: technical data and information deemed to be of • Access the NASA STI program home page at continuing reference value. NASA counter-part of http://www.sti.nasa.gov peer-reviewed formal professional papers but has less stringent limitations on manuscript length • E-mail your question to [email protected] and extent of graphic presentations. • Phone the NASA STI Information Desk at • TECHNICAL MEMORANDUM. Scientific 757-864-9658 and technical findings that are preliminary or of specialized interest, e.g., quick release reports, • Write to: working papers, and bibliographies that contain minimal annotation. Does not contain extensive NASA STI Information Desk analysis. Mail Stop 148 NASA Langley Research Center • CONTRACTOR REPORT. Scientific and tech- Hampton, VA 23681-2199 nical findings by NASA-sponsored contractors and grantees. NASA/SP-2014-3705 NASA Space Flight Program and Project Management Handbook National Aeronautics and Space Administration Headquarters Office of the Chief Engineer Washington, D.C. 20546 September 2014 On the Cover: This dramatic image of the Orion Nebula, created by using all the imaging instruments aboard the Hubble Space Telescope simultaneously and using data as well from the European Southern Observatory’s La Silla 2.2 meter telescope, represents the sharpest view ever taken of this region. More than 3,000 stars of various sizes appear in this image – from the massive, young stars that are shaping the nebula to the pillars of dense gas that may be the homes of budding stars. In a mosaic containing a billion pixels at full resolution of observations taken between 2004 and 2005, this extensive study took 105 Hubble orbits to complete. The Hubble Space Telescope is an international project between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) conducts Hubble science operations. Image credit: NASA, ESA, Massimo Robberto (STScI), and the Hubble Space Telescope Orion Treasury Project Team Given ships or sails adapted to the breezes of heaven, there will be those who will not shrink from even that vast expanse. – Johannes Kepler Letter to Galileo, 1610 To request copies or provide comments, contact the Office of the Chief Engineer at NASA Headquarters Electronic copies are available at http://ntrs.nasa.gov/ ISBN: 978-0-9710327-3-6 Table of Contents Preface __________________________________________xiii Acknowledgments ________________________________ xv 1 Introduction __________________________________ 1 1.1 Purpose _________________________________________________1 1.2 Document Structure _______________________________________1 1.3 How to Use This Handbook _________________________________2 2 High-Level Overview of Program and Project Management _________________________________ 5 2.1 Overview of Program and Project Life Cycles ___________________6 2.2 Oversight and Approval ____________________________________8 2.2.1 Decision Authority __________________________________9 2.2.2 Management Councils ______________________________ 10 2.2.3 Key Decision Points ________________________________ 10 2.3 Governance _____________________________________________ 11 2.4 NASA Programs _________________________________________ 13 2.5 NASA Projects __________________________________________ 15 2.6 Interrelationships Between NASA Programs and Projects ________ 17 3 Program Life Cycles, Oversight, and Activities by Phase _______________________________________ 21 3.1 NASA Programs _________________________________________ 21 3.1.1 Program Life Cycles ________________________________ 22 3.1.2 Program Life-Cycle Reviews _________________________ 24 3.1.3 Other Reviews and Resources ________________________ 30 3.1.4 Program Evolution and Recycling _____________________ 33 3.2 Program Oversight and Approval ___________________________34 3.2.1 Decision Authority _________________________________34 3.2.2 Management Councils ______________________________ 36 NASA SPACE FLIGHT PROGRAM AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT HANDBOOK iii 3.2.3 Key Decision Points ________________________________ 39 3.2.4 Decision Memorandum, Management Agreement, and Agency Baseline Commitment ____________________40 3.2.5 Management Forum—Baseline Performance Review ______42 3.3 Program Formulation _____________________________________44 3.3.1 Program Activities Leading to the Start of Formulation ____44 3.3.2 Program Formulation Activities ______________________44 3.3.3 Program Management, Planning, and Control Activities ___ 57 3.3.4 Technical Activities and Products _____________________68 3.3.5 Completing Formulation Activities and Preparing for Implementation ___________________________________ 79 3.4 Program Implementation __________________________________ 83 3.4.1 Implementation Activities Unique to Tightly Coupled and Single-Project Programs by Phase _____________________ 88 3.4.2 Final Design and Fabrication _________________________ 88 3.4.3 Preparing for Program Decommissioning and Closing Out _ 96 3.5 Program Products by Phase ________________________________ 96 3.5.1 Non-Configuration-Controlled Documents _____________ 96 3.5.2 Configuration-Controlled Documents__________________ 97 4 Project Life Cycle, Oversight, and Activities by Phase ___________________________________ 109 4.1 NASA Projects _________________________________________ 109 4.1.1 Project Life Cycle _________________________________ 112 4.1.2 Project Life-Cycle Reviews __________________________ 115 4.1.3 Other Reviews and Resources _______________________ 120 4.1.4 Project Evolution and Recycle _______________________ 122 4.1.5 Project Tailoring __________________________________ 122 4.2 Project Oversight and Approval ____________________________ 126 4.2.1 Decision Authority ________________________________ 127 4.2.2 Management Councils _____________________________ 128 4.2.3 Key Decision Points _______________________________ 132 4.2.4 Decision Memorandum, Management Agreement, and Agency Baseline Commitment _______________________ 133 4.2.5 Management Forum—Baseline Performance Review _____ 135 4.3 Project Formulation _____________________________________ 137 4.3.1 Concept Studies (Pre–Phase A) Activities ______________ 137 4.3.2 Completing Pre–Phase A (Concept Studies) Activities and Preparing for Phase A (Concept and Technology Development) ____________________________________ 148 4.3.3 Initiation of Competed Mission Projects _______________ 152 4.3.4 Project Phase A, Concept and Technology Development Activities ________________________________________ 153 iv Table of Contents 4.3.5 Completing Concept and Technology Development (Phase A) Activities and Preparing for Preliminary Design and Technology Completion (Phase B) __________ 177 4.3.6 Project Phase B, Preliminary Design and Technology Completion Activities ______________________________ 178 4.3.7 Completing Preliminary Design and Technology Completion (Phase B) Activities and Preparing for Final Design and Fabrication (Phase C) ____________________ 187 4.4 Project Implementation __________________________________ 189 4.4.1 Project Phase C, Final Design and Fabrication Activities __ 189 4.4.2 Completing Final Design and Fabrication (Phase C) Activities and Preparing for System Assembly, Integration and Test, Launch and Checkout (Phase D) ______________ 196 4.4.3 Project Phase D, System Assembly, Integration and Test, Launch and Checkout Activities _____________________ 198 4.4.4 Launch Approval Process and Transition to Operations ___ 203 4.4.5 Completing System Assembly, Integration and Test, Launch and Checkout (Phase D) Activities and Preparing for Operations and Sustainment (Phase E) _____________ 210 4.4.6 Project Phase E, Operations and Sustainment