This report, one in a series of audits examining NASA’s development of space flight systems for Artemis IV and future missions, examines the Agency’s plans to move its individual SLS contracts to a commercial services contract to lower the cost of the launch system.
Open Recommendations
Recommendation Number | Significant Recommendation | Recommended Questioned Costs | Recommended Funds for Better Use | Additional Details | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
Establish achievable cost saving metrics beginning with Artemis IV SLS elements and production contracts. | |||||
2 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
Transition the core stage and Exploration Upper Stage contracts to fixed-price contracts with a per mission price to codify the actual costs. | |||||
3 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
If keeping contracts as cost-plus-award-fee, increase the percentage of cost as a factor when conducting contractor evaluations for award fee purposes. | |||||
4 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
Conduct a detailed review of all contractor-submitted documents to ensure the government’s rights to data and processes are not unnecessarily transferred to the contractor. | |||||
5 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
Include contract flexibility on future SLS acquisitions that will allow NASA to pivot to other commercial alternatives. | |||||
6 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
For each Artemis SLS rocket under EPOC, add compensation to the DST contract such as incentive fees for when the contractor achieves specific cost saving goals. | |||||
7 | No | $0 | $0 | ||
Ensure Government Mandatory Inspection Points and government oversight teams remain throughout the EPOC transition period. |