Technical Operation of the National Space Propulsion Test Facility

Concepts

• uk space agency
• swindon
• repair and maintenance
• test facilities
• national space propulsion test facility
• technical support
• latter test chamber
• event of a facility breakdown
• test cells
• quarterly reports of use of the facility

Location

Westcott Venture Park, Westcott, Aylesbury. Buckinghamshire, HP18 0XB, England

Description

The UK Space Agency has a requirement to test customer engines using the NSPTF in a timely manner. Therefore, ensuring the test facilities are ready and available to perform testing of engines and propulsion systems for customers to the NSPTF, and to support ensuring the continuing testing of hardware in the event of a facility breakdown. The facility incorporates a range of testing hardware. The service provider will provide the test cells for the facility, from small thrust engine testing (1N+) up to medium thrust testing (up to 1500N). The latter test chamber will have new equipment (vacuum generating plant, common vacuum manifold, plume intercooler, vacuum chamber etc), owned by the UK Space Agency, that will be operated and maintained by service provider. Provide technical support for facility operations and enter into a technical support contract for running the facility with UKSA. This will include responsibility for all safety aspects in national facility operations and to support ensuring the continuing testing of hardware in the event of a facility breakdown. Provide cost estimates for customers through liaison with the brokers (STFC).

Total Quantity or Scope

The requirement is to: • Manage the operation of the NSPTF, supplying the personnel to operate the plant and to ensure that the maintenance, calibration and spares plans are in place. • Procure any consumables to support the operation of the NSPTF. • Management and storage of critical spares to support the aim. • To permit use of service provider test facilities (J3 test cell, mini-HATFA, HATFA) as part of the national facility and management of customers and third party users while on the site. • Provide the resources to run the testing of customer engines. • Demonstrate that compliance and strict governance is applied to Statutory and Regulatory requirements (including Health and Safety) • Maintain a sensible Health and Safety schedule, audited in an appropriate manner. • Handle customer's data securely • Provision of relevant insurance cover for activities. • Notification of issues to UKSA in line with notification protocol. • Liaison with the landlord for all landlord provided services (eg water, electrical supply etc) • Provide quarterly reports of use of the facility to the steering board and provide inputs into annual budgets definition for future running of the facility.

Award Detail

Renewal Options

The contract duration will be for a year on a 1+1+1+1+1 basis (maximum 5 years)

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 50800000 - Miscellaneous repair and maintenance services

Indicators

• Options are available.
• Award on basis of price.

Legal Justification

The Westcott facility and Nammo are the only location and supplier that can provide this service and therefore the authority are justified in awarding in accordance with regulation 32(5)(b).

Other Information

The UK has key expertise and facilities in industry and academia relating to both chemical and electric propulsion / testing. The lack of investment in current UK facilities means that they are not suitable to the new demands, with the result that UK engines have to be tested abroad at greater expense. The proposed National Space Propulsion Test Facility will incorporate a vacuum pumping facility, to simulate the vacuum of space to test propulsion systems, by drawing sea level ambient pressure from the platform that a propulsion system will be tested. The UK Space Agency have identified Westcott Venture Park, with the existing testing facilities of NAMMO Westcott Ltd, as the only area such a facility can be best achieved. The Westcott Venture Park is the UK's only chemical rocket test and development site. It has been in operation as such since 1946 and has been developing, manufacturing and testing rockets for space applications, primarily satellites, since the mid-1980s. Having explored the possibility of a National Propulsion centre being set up in areas other than the Westcott facility, no viable alternative site has been identified. There is no other comparable location to Westcott, with a suitably skilled workforce located in the UK. Moreover, NAMMO Westcott Ltd has invested in Westcott facility and they would allow companies and Universities to access their facility, which may not occur elsewhere. The vast majority of the operating time will be setting up and firing of the tested engines, less than 20% of the time will be to operate the vacuum pump assembly being built by the UK Space Agency, with ESA expertise, to be attached to the test rig (giving the simulated experience of the vacuum of space). Therefore, while NAMMO staff operate their equipment to test the engine, their staff will be best placed to continue to operate the vacuum pump before firing any tested engine.