Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program (New Series in NASA History) [Paperback]

Howard E. McCurdy (Author)

Book Description

Series: New Series in NASA History | Publication Date: September 24, 2003

In Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program, Howard E. McCurdy examines NASA's recent efforts to save money while improving mission frequency and performance. McCurdy details the sixteen missions undertaken during the 1990s—including an orbit of the moon, deployment of three space telescopes, four Earth-orbiting satellites, two rendezvous with comets and asteroids, and a test of an ion propulsion engine—which cost less than the sum traditionally spent on a single, conventionally planned planetary mission. He shows how these missions employed smaller spacecraft and cheaper technology to undertake less complex and more specific tasks in outer space. While the technological innovation and space exploration approach that McCurdy describes is still controversial, the historical perspective on its disappointments and triumphs points to ways of developing "faster, better, and cheaper" as a management manifesto.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This excellent summary of an important part of NASA's history is recommended for all readers.

(Choice 2007)

Readers interested in either the management or economics of complex organizations will find a wealth of material in this well-written exposition. Fans of space travel, like the author himself, will also enjoy the behind-the-scenes look at NASA's operation.

(Michael N. Geselowitz Enterprise and Society )

An excellent overview of Goldin's initiative and of the scholarly literature that bears on the topic.

(Technology and Culture )

Howard McCurdy is an exceptionally talented scholar who has made many seminal contributions to aerospace history. His new book, Faster, Better, Cheaper, is the first scholarly attempt to explore NASA's transformation from one in which large-scale space science projects were the norm into one in which projects that are smaller, less expensive, and generally less expansive rule the day. McCurdy offers an excellent introduction to NASA's new management approach and points to further understanding and evolution. It will become required reading for NASA managers and engineers, and it will find a significant audience among space scientists and aerospace leaders around the globe.

(Roger D. Launius, Chair of the Space History Division, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution )

It is an engaging story, and the book itself is small enough for bedtime reading.

(Satellite Evolution Group )

From the Publisher

"Howard McCurdy is an exceptionally talented scholar who has made many seminal contributions to aerospace history. His new book, Faster, Better, Cheaper, is the first scholarly attempt to explore NASA's transformation from one in which large-scale space science projects were the norm into one in which projects that are smaller, less expensive, and generally less expansive rule the day. McCurdy offers an excellent introduction to NASA's new management approach and points to further understanding and evolution. It will become required reading for NASA managers and engineers, and it will find a significant audience among space scientists and aerospace leaders around the globe."—Roger D. Launius, Chief Historian, NASA --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: The Johns Hopkins University Press (September 24, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801877490
• ISBN-13: 978-0801877490
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,057,133 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Managing Space Exploration--It's Not as Easy as it Looks, January 5, 2006

By 

Roger D. Launius "Historian" (Washington, D.C., United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program (New Series in NASA History) (Paperback)

During the early 1990s NASA undertook a set of low-cost space science mission that became known as the "faster, better, cheaper" program. It was not really a program, of course, but more of a mantra, and Howard E. McCurdy's important study of the trend in the 1990s helps to explain what it was and what it was not. It emerged in the aftermath of the loss of the multi-billion dollar Mars Observer spacecraft in 1993, when NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin announced that he could no longer abide the building of "Battlestar Galactica" type space probes. NASA had to find a way to accomplish low-cost missions to the planets. McCurdy notes that one of the fundamental tenets of the program management concept was that three critical factors--cost, schedule, and reliability--were interrelated and had to be managed as a group. He also notes that managing for all three proved exceptionally difficult; if program managers held cost to a specific level, then one of the other two factors, or both of them to a somewhat lesser degree, would be adversely affected. The "faster, better, cheaper" concept tried to squeeze each of these issues--although many said you could successfully "pick two" to control rather than all three--but remarkably NASA project managers did so with some success.

McCurdy first identifies the missions that fell into the "faster, better, cheaper" model. These included: NEAR (Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous), Mars Pathfinder, Lunar Prospector, Stardust, Deep Space 1 and 2, Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Climate Orbiter, Mars Polar Lander, SAMPLEX, Fast Auroral Snapshot Explorer (FAST), Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS), Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE), Wide-Field Infrared Explorer (WIRE), and the Lewis and Clark probes. Out of these 16 missions, five failed to achieve their objectives. Two of the failures were spectacular--Mars Polar Lander and Mars Climate Orbiter in 1999--some were equally spectacular such as Mars Pathfinder in 1997 and Lunar Prospector in 1998. Others, such as Mars Global Surveyor, continue to deliver path-breaking scientific data.

After describing the missions and their outcomes, McCurdy then tallies the parameters that led to the success of these missions. These lessons learned included:
1. Use cohesive technical teams with authority to do the job.
2. Maintain visibility through reviews
3. Use a design-to-cost philosophy
4. Apply risk management techniques
5. Use experienced personnel
6. Establish good communication
7. Conduct better up-front planning
8. Have clear requirement definition
9. Use technology with an appropriate readiness level

This is a valuable study written for the project manager seeking to complete a successful high technology effort on schedule and on budget. It is an easy read and worthwhile for anyone seeking knowledge on how NASA has been able to accomplish its complex tasks. McCurdy undertook this study for the NASA History Division while I was Chief Historian, and the result helped to reshape the project management approach at the agency. I highly recommend "Faster, Better, Cheaper."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Analysis of NASA's successes and failures in the 90s, July 16, 2002

By 

Ryan Zelnio "space geek" (San Jose, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program (New Series in NASA History) (Hardcover)

This book examines in great detail why FBC was needed and what its impact was. McCurdy looks not only at the successes like Mars Pathfinder but also examines FBC's failures. His analysis helps highlight the pros and cons of FBC, an understanding that will help the reader understand NASA's space exploration program.
One of the most interesting parts in this book is the comparison of Pathfinder and Viking and the breakdown in costs associated with the two. It also explores the kinds of decisions that went into MPF to dispel the myth that Viking created in that space exploration required multi-billion dollar missions.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Goldin Days..., January 1, 2006

By 

Jack Kennedy Jr. "Jack Kennedy 276.275.4700" (Wise, Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Faster, Better, Cheaper: Low-Cost Innovation in the U.S. Space Program (New Series in NASA History) (Paperback)

Pathfinder to Mars was the highlight of Faster, Better, Cheaper and Howard McCurdy's book provides an overview of the management there through effective comparisons. The book is instructive as to the management of high-tech space projects during NASA's Dan Goldin years. Nonetheless, it appears that management can achieve only two elements of the triade of FBC at any given time effectively. Pathfinder was a remarkable exception to the general rule.