MSRR Shipped to KSC for Final Flight Preparations

TBE’s Aerospace Systems group reached a key milestone on its Systems Development and Operations Support (SDOS) contract six weeks ahead of the original schedule when a major task order – the fabrication, assembly, and testing of the Materials Science Research Rack (MSRR) – was completed.

The MSRR effort, which involved TBE and numerous other subcontractor personnel working together with Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), took over 5 years to complete.  The finished product was shipped Dec. 3 from MSFC to the Kennedy Space Center, where final launch preparations will take place.  The multi-user MSRR will ultimately be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) via the space shuttle Atlantis on the STS-128 flight, currently scheduled for Aug. 6, 2009.

The MSRR has a planned duration of 5 years of on-orbit experiment operations and a total design life of 10 years.  The rack is an ISS Active Rack Isolation System (ARIS) International Standard Payload Rack outfitted with a European Space Agency (ESA)-provided Materials Science Laboratory (MSL) processing furnace and Rack Support System equipment.  This equipment includes a Master Controller (TBE fabricated), a Video Box, a Solid-State Power Control Module, a Thermal and Environmental Control System (TECS), a Vacuum Access System (VAS), and numerous structural and electrical system components.

The MSRR will be installed onboard the ISS in the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the primary research laboratory for U.S. payloads, to accommodate advanced investigations in the microgravity environment for materials research and applications in areas such as the solidification of metals and alloys and crystal growth studies of semiconductor materials.

The goals of these investigations will support the advancement of the scientific understanding of materials processing as affected by microgravity and the use of low-gravity experiments for insight into the physical behavior of materials processing.  The investigations will also provide scientific knowledge needed to improve materials processing and contribute to Earth-based materials processing systems.

Other program-essential hardware manufactured by TBE over this same 5-year period included:  the Ground Rack Assembly, Crew Trainer Rack Assembly, spare Master Controller Avionics Control Assembly, four Launch/On-Orbit Stowage Plate Assemblies, over 80 Wire Harness Assemblies, the Rack Rotation Stand, the Rack Coolant System Water Servicer Assembly, spare Thermal Control Fluid System Control Shelf Assembly, spare Vacuum System Sensor Assembly, spare Thermal Control System Fluid Accumulator Assembly, and numerous other flight and ground support equipment items.

Serving as TBE project manager for the MSRR effort was Don Geurkink, who noted that the task was a complete success, “There were a lot of ups and downs on the project, with over 900 engineering design changes since the beginning of the project, many of which have been in the last few weeks as the MSRR neared completion.  In all cases though,” added Geurkink, “the team responded in an outstanding manner with exceptional contributions and outstanding dedication to get the job done.”

In thanking employees for a job well done, Geurkink also noted that TBE’s NASA customers had many positive things to say about the MSRR work, including “we can always count on TBE.”

TBE personnel who made significant contributions to the MSRR development program included:  Scott Babbitt, Hanns Billmayer, Jeff Clancy, Stanley Downs, Kathy Dunn, Jeff Dysart, Kathy Fourroux, Charlie Gibson, Phyllis Grela, George Himmelright, Cheryl Hoke, Bill Horn, Judy Johnson, Kimberly Krajna, Tim Lauderdale, John Lehman, Curt Lewis, Rickey Mason, Roger Miller, Ivy Nelson, Cliff Rook, Ricky Speegle, Randy Speegle, Patsy Smith.