A GSFC perspective on the execution of faster, better, cheaper

The Small Explorer (SMEX) Project at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) has accumulated nearly a decade of experience building missions with the underlying philosophy of “Faster, Better, Cheaper” (FBC). This project, under the Explorer Technology Infusion effort, has developed a protoflight version of a 21^st Century FBC spacecraft bus that has just completed environmental qualification and has been selected as the base spacecraft for NASA´s Triana mission. Design and production of these six high performance spacecraft, in just ten years time, has provided a unique base of experience from which to draw lessons learned. This paper discusses the fundamental practices that have been used by the SMEX Project as well as relevant experiences from other innovative projects at GSFC