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CX2SA > SAREX 24.11.05 00:26l 70 Lines 2986 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 63590_CX2SA
Read: GUEST
Subj: [sarex] Back in Business
Path: ON0AR<F6KMO<F5GI<DK0WUE<SP7MGD<IZ0AWG<IW8PGT<CX2SA
Sent: 051123/2322Z @:CX2SA.LAV.URY.SA #:63590 [Minas] FBB7.00e $:63590_CX2SA
From: CX2SA@CX2SA.LAV.URY.SA
To : SAREX@WW
SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468
Back in Business
11.23.05
The steady hum of oversized sewing machines is finally returning to the
building where a team of dedicated employees pieces together the space
shuttle's protective skin.
A sewing machine inside the refurbished TPSFOn Sept. 4, 2004, Hurricane
Frances struck NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. As the wind
whipped around and rain fell in drenching sheets, several facilities
sustained varying degrees of damage. But the storm dealt an especially
heavy blow to the Thermal Protection System Facility.
The shuttle's thermal protection system comprises heat-resistant tiles,
gap fillers and insulating blankets. This complex network protects each
orbiter from the intense heat of launch and reentry, as well as the
extreme cold of space. These delicate, life-saving components are
manufactured and repaired inside the two-story, 44,000-square-foot building.
Tiles and related raw materials are made on the facility's ground level,
which experienced water intrusion during the storm. Although some of the
offices flooded, tile machining, coating and firing equipment weren't
harmed and manufacturing operations continued. But on the second floor,
where the exterior and interior thermal blankets and gap fillers are
manufactured, damage was extensive. The rain poured in after 65 percent
of the roof was blown away by high winds, rendering the entire level
uninhabitable.
With the first return-to-flight mission approaching, there was no time
to lose. Vital equipment, including the specialized sewing machines, was
quickly relocated to the Reusable Launch Vehicle hangar at the nearby
Shuttle Landing Facility. Inside, normal work continued, with no impact
to the launch date.
On Nov. 19, 2005, more than a year after the storm struck, employees
worked together to return all the equipment -- along with personnel
necessities such as furniture, computers and telephones -- back to the
Thermal Protection System Facility's second floor, as well as the
Materials Service Center on the first floor.
Moving back was a huge, carefully choreographed undertaking, according
to United Space Alliance employee Martin Wilson, the facility's manager.
Huge rooms that sat empty less than a week ago had to be filled and
organized.
"It went remarkably smoothly," Wilson says. "We knew moving back would
be a lot simpler than moving out. Still, it was about 40 to 50 tons of
equipment, furniture and racks. But everyone had an independent role;
everyone showed up and we just had a great day."
He's quick to point out that with everything back in place, work has
already resumed in the refurbished facility.
"In fact, we're shipping parts this afternoon."
TO VIEW PICTURES GO
TO:http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/tpsf.html
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