94 



some maintenance deficiencies have been responsible for several component fail- 

 ures that have adversely impacted research completion dates. 

 The benefits from the aeronautical facilities revitalization program along with the 

 increased emphasis on facilities maintenance has resulted in a 50 percent increase 

 in productivity todav as compared to the conditions prior to revitalization pro- 

 gram. The past rehabilitation projects have played a major role in the productivity 

 increase. 



Space Flight Centers 



NASA's Space Flight Program has three field Centers and one field installation 

 that have significant Research and Development capabilities that were surveyed by 

 the GAO. Thej/ are: the Johnson Space Center, Marshall Space Flight Center, 

 Stennis Space Center, and the White Sands Test Facility. 



Over two-thirds of the Space Flight laboratories identified in the survey were con- 

 structed in the 1963-1972 time period. Another 16 percent of these facilities were 

 constructed during the 1953-1962 time period. As such, these laboratories face 

 many of the facility maintenance and repair problems one would expect from fa- 

 cilities extensively used and of this age. Many obsolete and worn out building sys- 

 tems, are reflective of an infrastructure that is over 30 years old. Within this 

 framework, the condition of Space Flight Research and Development laboratories 

 are considered as fair with facility equipment in a somewhat lesser state. However, 

 the fact that these Research and Development laboratories still perform their mis- 

 sions despite the age of the facilities and supporting systems attest to the mainte- 

 nance staffs' ability to stretch the systems beyond normally expected life cycles. 

 These Centers have experienced infrastructure and equipment failures such as 

 thermal cyclic fatigue in large and complex piping systems, corrosion and cyclic 

 fatigue that reduce the reliability of engine exhaust deflectors and require exten- 

 sive repairs to assure engine test reliability. Large chiller units have failed and 

 threatened vital tests and required the set up of temporary chiller systems. Electri- 

 cal control systems have failed, many with obsolete parts requiring significant re- 

 work and impacting operational capability. Despite these facility and system 

 breakdowns, the performance of Research and Development has continued with 

 the recognition that the performance margins are extremely narrow now and that 

 long-range planning is required to assure that the labs are available for the future. 



Revitalization 



Revitalization is a critical component of NASA's infrastructure investment. It is 

 the renewal effort applied to the existing overall facility inventory that extends the 

 useful service life beyond the original design life. This effort focuses on restoring and 

 modernizing the existing plant, including remediation of environmental damage. This 

 does not include the routine maintenance requirements. 



Revitalization can be expressed in either of two ways, as an annual percentage rate 

 or renewal frequency. Both are derived in relation to the CRV of NASA's facilities in- 

 ventory. The annual percentage rate is determined by dividing the yearly revitalization 

 funding by the CRV, multiplied by 100. The renewal frequency in years is obtained by 

 dividing CRV by yearly revitalization funding. 



Within NASA, our revitalization efforts include major restoration and moderniza- 

 tion projects, minor repair and rehabilitation/modification projects, and environmental 

 remediation projects. The current FY 1994 budget includes approximately $233 mil- 

 lion for revitalization. This investment translates to 1.5 percent of the CRV and an 

 annual renewal cycle of 65 years. 



The Future of Facilities Maintenance and Repair 



The present constrained budget climate poses significant challenges in maintaining 

 recent internal funding augmentations and improvements in the facilities maintenance 

 and repair program. Our efforts will continue to identify increased efficiencies in exe- 

 cution, state-of-theart facilities maintenance practices, and opportunities for 



