COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Texas Engineering Experiment Station has been awarded a $48 million NASA contract to design and develop equipment for current and future human spaceflight programs. Under Johnson Space Center’s Crew Robotics and Vehicle Equipment (CRAVE) procurement, TEES will provide work in engineering design, analysis, prototyping and hardware development for human space exploration. NASA announced the award Jan. 7. "Our selection for the CRAVE contract ushers in a whole new era of collaboration between Texas A&M Engineering and NASA’s Johnson Space Center," said Dr. G. Kemble Bennett, vice chancellor and dean of engineering. "We have a long history of working together to advance technology and research and we look forward to this expanded opportunity to serve the nation’s space program." Dr. David C. Hyland, TEES deputy director and associate vice chancellor for engineering, and Dr. Ray Askew, TEES distinguished research scientist, led the Texas A&M Engineering effort to obtain the contract. TEES will administer and oversee the project, which runs through December 2009. Collaborating with TEES on the project are Muniz Engineering Inc., StarVision Technologies, Independent Design Analyses Inc., Dittmar Associates, Anadarko Industries, GeoControl Systems Inc., Aero Tech Precision Manufacturing Inc., AZ Technologies Inc., and the University of Colorado’s BioServ Space Technologies. NASA awarded a total of four CRAVE contracts. The other recipients of a CRAVE award are Hamilton Sundstrand Services, Oceaneering Space Systems Inc. and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Among the equipment NASA has targeted for the CRAVE contracts are crew health and environmental systems, extravehicular robotics equipment, spacecraft flight crew equipment, and environmental control systems.
