NASA Warns of Delays in Moon Rocket Program Due to Boeing’s Production Challenges

NASA's Moon rocket program faces significant delays and cost increases due to manufacturing and management issues at Boeing. The challenges, highlighted in a recent report, threaten to postpone the Artemis IV mission and have already led to a $700 million cost overrun.

NASA’s Artemis IV Mission Faces Delays Due to Boeing’s Manufacturing Challenges and Quality Issues

NASA's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has released a report that offers insight into the Space Launch System (SLS) efforts of NASA and Boeing as they continue to analyze the data from the latter's Starliner spacecraft in anticipation of a safe personnel return to Earth. NASA intends to launch a more potent rocket in 2028 as part of the Artemis IV mission, following the successful launch of the first generation SLS in November 2022 with the Orion ship to the Moon.

Nevertheless, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) cautions that the mission may be postponed due to substantial manufacturing and project management challenges with Boeing. According to Wccftech, this is one of the four recommendations the OIG has issued, three of which NASA has agreed to implement promptly this year. Boeing's new CEO assumed the position and relocated his office to Seattle to better understand the aerospace company's manufacturing and production processes. The OIG's report followed this development.

The OIG's report concerns the SLS Block 1B rocket, which will expand the SLS system's payload capacity from 27 to 38 tons. The new Exploration Upper Stage (EUS) is a critical enhancement component. It is the second stage for transporting Orion and other payloads to the Moon.

The OIG's evaluation indicates that Boeing's Michoud facilities have experienced significant delays in completing the EUS due to inadequate quality management. Metal shavings and Teflon were the foreign object detritus discovered within the SLS Core Stage 2 liquid hydrogen fuel tank. The Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), which collaborates with NASA to supervise contractors, has issued 71 Level 1 and Level 2 Corrective Action Requests (CARs) to Boeing. Of these, 24 were Level 2 CARs, which are more severe. Other issues have also contributed to this situation.

Boeing Faces Increased Scrutiny and Delays on NASA's SLS 1B Rocket Amid Cost Overruns and Workforce Challenges

NASA also requested that its Stages chief safety officer compose a Level III CAR, which was even more severe. This draft CAR would combine the findings from 20 CARs and IIs for stamp-level warranties issued to Boeing between January 2022 and April 2023. A stamp warranty guarantees that the agency's contractor has adhered to all work instructions, and Level III CARs typically review a manuscript before submitting an official request.

The violations identified under these categories were the incorrect approval of "hardware processing under unacceptable environmental conditions, accepted and presented damaged seals to NASA for inspection," as explained by the OIG.

The OIG also reports that Boeing needs help retaining employees to work on SLS 1B hardware due to the remote location of the Michoud facilities and the low compensation. Although NASA officials emphasized that Boeing is educating its workforce and issuing work orders, the inspector general believes these measures must be revised. One instance of this was the EUS' completion, which was delayed by seven months due to improper welds on a liquid oxygen tank.

The OIG is skeptical that Boeing's efforts to establish a more comprehensive hands-on training program, which includes model-based instructions and a mock-up of the EUS equipment shelf that houses avionics and flight computers, will produce immediate results. The OIG has identified additional issues, such as inadequate work orders, that are challenging for technicians who need more interpreting experience.

Due to these and other issues, the SLS 1B's development has experienced a $700 million cost increase over the approximately $5 billion baseline that NASA established in December 2023. The OIG further states that the EUS will incur a cost of nearly $2.8 billion until 2028, which is "three times the initial agreed-upon cost of $962 million in 2017." NASA disputes this evaluation and reiterates to the inspector general that Boeing's workforce reduction for the 1B will result in cost reductions.

These delays result from various factors, such as the redirection of EUS funds to the Artemis 1 core stage, the modification of mission dates, manufacturing issues, supply chain issues, and the maintenance of the EUS workforce. The OIG reports that "Boeing spent an average of $26 million per month on its EUS workforce, contractors, and related costs" from February to August 2023. It anticipates that this expenditure will persist until the EUS is delivered to NASA in 2027. NASA officials think Boeing's delay in negotiations and contract agreements with its suppliers worsened numerous supply chain challenges.

The remaining issues that have contributed to the EUS' delays include NASA's decision to postpone the establishment of a cost baseline until December 2023. The agency's rationale for this decision was "based on lessons learned from cost estimation challenges with the SLS Block 1." In addition, Boeing's Earned Value Management System (EVMS), which is software employed to monitor cost and schedule, has "influenced NASA's Stages contract with Boeing—including visibility into cost, schedule, and resource requirements for the contract's remaining work."

Boeing's Project Delays and Compliance Issues Prompt NASA to Implement New Quality Control Measures

This system has also encountered difficulties at the Pentagon, as it has been disapproved since 2020. The DCMA has identified several issues, including "deficiencies in identifying management reserves, maintaining estimates at completion, and maintaining the baseline." Boeing anticipates the work will be completed by late 2024 as part of its work under CAR II and CAR III requests, as per the OIG.

The OIG issued four recommendations to NASA in response to these issues. NASA is in the process of creating a quality management system that meets the pertinent standards, imposing financial penalties on Boeing for noncompliance with quality control, conducting a cost overrun analysis for Boeing's contract performance, and collaborating with the DCMA to "ensure contractual compliance" with the EVMS requirements.

NASA has consented to the first, third, and fourth recommendations. They are anticipated to be finalized by July 2025, December 2024, and October 2024. Nevertheless, the space agency maintains that the second recommendation, which is that the financial penalties are "outside the bounds of the contract," is accurate. According to the agency, there "are already authorities in the contract, such as award fee provisions, which enable financial ramifications for noncompliance with quality control standards."