GuestSearch: Mark Bray. Topics: Aerospace engineering standards. You are invited to comment, ask questions, and discuss the Space Show program/guest(s) on the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments, questions, and any discussion must be relevant and applicable to Space Show programming. Transcripts of Space Show programs are not permitted without prior written consent from The Space Show (even if for personal use) & are a violation of the Space Show copyright. The Space Show/OGLF is now engaged in its annual fundraising drive. Please see & act upon our appeal at http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com/2011/11/21/space-show-2011-fundraisin…. We welcomed Mark Bray back to the program to discuss standards for NASA and the aerospace engineering field. You can also check out Mark's blog at http://braynstorms.com as was mentioned near the end of this two hour discussion. Also, The White Paper referred to in our discussion, "Achieving Innovation and Affordability Through Standardization of Materials Development and Testing" can be downloaded from http://braynstorms.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Achieving-Innovation-…. NOTE THAT MR. BRAY IS SPEAKING FOR HIMSELF DURING THIS INTERVIEW. HE IS NOT SPEAKING FOR NASA, ANY CONTRACTOR OR ANY OTHER PARTY. As we began our discussion with Mark, we talked about the situation at Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Huntsville in terms of projects, employees, moods, morale, etc. Mark was comprehensive in his perspective, even talking about ATK, New Space and government procurement as well as the FAR. Mark then shifted to standards and talked quite a bit about testing methods and why standards are needed. Listeners asked about Space X and standards as well as Dr. Mike Griffin and standards at NASA when he was the administrator. Later in the segment, we backed up and got Mark to explain the problems regarding standards or the lack thereof. Later, a listener asked Mark for some examples. One example he gave us was Henry Ford and standards at the early Ford Motor Company. Toward the end of the segment, Mark started addressing liability issues along with fielding a question about the Dream Chaser vehicle. In the second segment, we talked about government contracts and some oversight. Mark explained testing in greater details and we asked why there would be opposition to standards. Mark also raised the issue of why there was no PE title for aerospace engineers. You might be surprised by what he had to say about this. During this segment, we again discussed liability protection for the developing companies. Mark was very critical of putting energy into liability shielding and protection over standards. I supported Mark in his comments. Make sure you hear this discussion which may prove controversial for many of you. Near the end, I asked Mark about his fellow employees at MSFC and how they processed the economic news regarding the US and from around the world. I wanted to know how the teams understood and applied to their jobs and profession the economic information and conditions in the country. Don't miss his pearls of wisdom closing comments.
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