Category Archives: Business

Business, Economics, Media Criticism, Political Commentary, Space

Sierra Nevada

8 Comments

An article in the Denver Post on how Shelby’s antics may affect it. First, a brief rant:

Louisville-based Sierra Nevada Corp.’s Space Systems, California-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, and Chicago-based Boeing Co. are the remaining businesses vying for a chance to be the next U.S. shuttle service, a contract expected to be awarded in August.

Gaaahhh! Stop calling space ships “shuttles.” There was only one Space Shuttle. It’s not a generic term, as “kleenex” seems to have become. There will never be another one. I hope, anyway.

This is wrong, too:

Cost-plus estimation allows contractors to account in advance for ballooning costs.

No, it doesn’t. It allows the contractor to be reimbursed for their costs, if the contract is a cost-plus contract, which this one isn’t, which is why this is so stupid.

Business, Economics, Media Criticism, Political Commentary, Space, Technology and Society

Bill Nelson

22 Comments

He’s pushing back against Shelby’s attempt to sabotage commercial crew.

I don’t think this is right, though:

NASA insists that waiving certain parts of the Federal Acquisition Regulations, which the agency may legally do in certain situations, is vital to getting a commercially designed system safely up and running.

NASA isn’t “waiving certain parts of the FAR.” It is following the FAR, which doesn’t require cost-plus-like accounting for fixed-price contracts. In fact it is Shelby who is trying to change the FAR by demanding that it be used anyway.