{"431911":{"#nid":"431911","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Mitchell Walker: Aligning propulsion innovations with market pressures","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EIt takes more than a great idea to make an impact in today\u2019s space technology market. Just ask Prof.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EMitchell Walker.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs the chair of the \u201cGovernment Investments Enabling Advancement of In-space Propulsion\u201d panel at AIAA\u2019s recent Propulsion and Energy Forum 360 (July 27-29), Walker brought together several industry and government experts for a robust discussion of the future.\u0026nbsp; All seemed to agree: market pressures must be incorporated into any innovation strategy.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cCompetition in the global space-propulsion market continues to increase as industry continues to invest in technology and strategy and agencies are using technology programs to push the boundaries,\u201d Walker said.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIt is very important to align the focus of government-funded technology with the needs, requirements, and commercial opportunities of industry. This will support the critical commercial infusion and eventual sustainability of in-space propulsion technology developed with government funding.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJoining Walker in the AIAA panel were Google + Skybox Imaging\u2019s chief engineer\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EJonny Dyer\u003C\/strong\u003E; the Institute for Defense Analyses\u2019 director of science and technology policy Dr.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EMark Lewis\u003C\/strong\u003E; Space Systems Loral\u2019s advanced solar electric propulsion programs manager\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026nbsp;Peter Lord\u003C\/strong\u003E; Aerojet Rocketdyne\u2019s executive director for advanced in-space systems\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003ERoger Myers\u003C\/strong\u003E; and NASA\u2019s senior technical officer for the Space Technology Directorate Dr.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EJeffrey Sheehy\u003C\/strong\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAlthough early investments in space-propulsion systems have bolstered national defense and space-exploration programs, the emergence of public-private partnerships has made the market more complicated, according Myers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne thing thwarting advances in propulsion technology? The need for the investment to take into account both the cost and the risk of the new technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIf it can\u2019t do that,\u201d Myers said, \u201cThe system will most likely be rejected.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMyers pointed out that time-tested technology holds the edge for approvals while the potential benefits of new technology are overshadowed by system uncertainty. Myers said electric propulsion systems and solar electric power systems receive the majority of investment dollars.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EInvestment in this area is also impeded by the size of the market and the time it takes to bring a new idea to market. The longer the development period, the more likely it is to fail.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EDyer pointed out that the delays inevitably make it harder to market up and coming innovations:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe are flying 50-year-old technology exclusively, with thrusters going back to Apollo. Imagine if I tried to sell you a 50-year-old telephone. Nobody is going to buy a 50-year-old telephone.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.aiaa-propulsionenergy.org\/GovtInvestments_PE2015\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Cem\u003EView\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cem\u003Ethe entire panel discussion.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Mitchell Walker brought together several industry and government experts for a robust discussion of the future.  All seemed to agree: market pressures must be incorporated into any innovation strategy."}],"uid":"27456","created_gmt":"2015-08-05 15:51:03","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:19:19","author":"Britanny Grace","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-07-31T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-07-31T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"431921":{"id":"431921","type":"image","title":"Dr. Mitchell Walker  brought together a panel of experts at AIAA\u0027s Propulsion \u0026 Energy Forum 360","body":null,"created":"1449256133","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 19:08:53","changed":"1475895171","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:52:51","alt":"Dr. Mitchell Walker  brought together a panel of experts at AIAA\u0027s Propulsion \u0026 Energy Forum 360","file":{"fid":"202901","name":"07-31-walker-aiaa.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/07-31-walker-aiaa_1.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/07-31-walker-aiaa_1.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":127904,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/07-31-walker-aiaa_1.jpg?itok=0djSFPLM"}}},"media_ids":["431921"],"groups":[{"id":"1239","name":"School of Aerospace Engineering"}],"categories":[{"id":"136","name":"Aerospace"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"1325","name":"aerospace"},{"id":"2082","name":"aerospace engineering"},{"id":"2576","name":"AIAA"},{"id":"103571","name":"american institute of aeronautics and astronautics"},{"id":"2474","name":"Mitchell Walker"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":["communications@ae.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}