Feedback

• Customer. There is a good coverage of scope and objectives, but the presentation could be more engaging.
Good application of the concepts of programme and projects. 40/60.
• Planner. You have done good research and managed to put the project within the context of the bigger
programme and to prepare a useful GANTT chart. You could have considered providing more details
about the specific Challenger project, as information about it is readily available. Also, you could have
indicated which code corresponds to Challenger. 40/60
• PM. Very well presented section. Using a cause and effect diagram was a very good idea. Slide 6 is
excellent and really does the job of focusing on the critical issue in this project failure. Well done! 45/60.
• Consultant. This is a very good section thanks to bringing in the LOPA approach - well applied and
explained. Well presented. The application of PRINCE2 concepts is also good. 45/60.
• Group: Very good slides that make overall for a very interesting presentation with a convincing flow
between the different sections. Very well researched. 30/40.
Introduction
Challenger Space Shuttle was a
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) space vehicle
designed for crewed missions and
scientific research
However, it encountered a tragic
incident on January 28, 1986, when it
exploded shortly after launch,
resulting in the loss of all seven crew
members on board.
It was supposed to have a crucial role
in deploying satellites into orbit,
conducting experiments in
microgravity, and supporting various
space missions
We will discuss the case study through
project management aspect and
explore possible recommendations as
a consultant on how tragedy could
have been avoided.
Client
Program: Main
• Scope NASA’s Contractor:
• Budget and Timeline Space Morton
Shuttle Thiokol
• Project Objectives Project:
 Develop a reusable spacecraft system Challenger
Space
 Enable crewed missions for scientific research & satellite Shuttle
deployments
 Cost-effective and efficient means of accessing space
 To advance human spaceflight capabilities for
technological advancement
 International Collaboration in space exploration
 Encourage public interest and engagement in space science
 Task Name Start Finish

Planner Design and development

STA-099 development
OV-099 development
Manufacturing and assembly
Tue 26/07/72 Fri 27/01/79
Tue 26/07/72 Mon 14/02/78
Thu 05/01/79 Fri 27/01/79
Sat 28/01/79 Thu 23/10/81
Structural assembly
Phase 1 Phase 2 Testing and certification Sat 28/01/79 Thu 23/10/81
Design and Manufacturing and Rollout to delivery Fri 24/10/81 Tue 22/12/82
development (1970s assembly (Late 1970s Flight readiness firing Fri 24/10/81 Mon 06/07/82
Operational missions
to early 1980s) to early 1980s) First flight STS-6
Tue 07/07/82 Tue 22/12/82
Sun 04/04/83 Tue 05/02/86
STS-7
Sun 04/04/83 Fri 09/04/83
STS-8
STS-41-B Fri 18/06/83 Fri 25/06/83
STS-41-C Mon 30/08/83 Mon 06/09/83
STS-41-G Thu 03/02/84 Fri 11/02/84
STS-51-B
Phase 4 Phase 3 STS-51-F
Thu 06/04/84 Thu 13/04/84
Mon 09/10/84 Sun 15/10/84
Operational missions Testing and STS-61-A
STS-51-L Sun 29/04/85 Mon 07/05/85
(1983 to 1986) certification (Early to Sun 29/07/85 Mon 06/08/85
mid 1980s) Tue 30/10/85 Wed 07/11/85
Mon 28/01/86 Tue 05/02/86

Gantt Chart
Project manager
• Success viewpoints

Technical
advancemen
t
Payload
deployment
• Prevailing risk assessment method
 Product based risk assessment approach with quantitative risk analysis

Fails to address Failure mode and effects analysis(FMEA)

 Revealed O-ring seal had a critical rating of
Decision Inadequate
Human
making
External
user 1(C1) in 1982
error pressure
error training
 Managers granted exemptions for C1 because
they were seen as acceptable risks.
Exhibit.1: The Consequences classification system (Kerzner,2009)
 Consultant
• Recommendations
 Process based risk assessment
 Projects In Controlled Environments
(PRINCE2) framework
Layer of protection analysis(LOPA)
 Resolves disagreements in decision-
Exhibit.2: LOPA model for challenger (Damle
making effectively and Murray,2012)

 Utilizes likelihood and severity to

calculate the risk of events
 Less time to analyse scenarios that are
too complex to be qualitatively
evaluated

Exhibit.3: Layer definitions and flow (Damle and Murray,2012)

 PRINCE2 framework

Learning from Stage reviews

experience
Evaluates
Captures and project's
analysis lessons readiness for the
learned next stage as
throughout the Effective well as identify
project lifecycle
communication
and mitigate any
risks
Clear roles and
channel responsibilities
Decision-
Establishes makers,
communication stakeholders,
channels for and technical
sharing experts are
information, identified and
risks and assigned
concerns responsibilities
Comments
 Client

 Planner

 Project manager

 Consultant
Conclusion
 Any framework should be properly applied and customized to suit the specific project context if
not effectiveness may be compromised
 Projects can be influenced by external factors beyond the control of the project team leading to
drifting
 Projects can fail if initial expectations and planning are not realistic or based on accurate
information
 The success of a project relies heavily on strong leadership and effective project governance
References
 Altabbakh, H., Murray, S., Grantham, K., & Damle, S. (2013). Variations in risk
management models: A comparative study of the space shuttle challenger disasters.
EMJ - Engineering Management Journal, 25(2), 13–24.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10429247.2013.11431971

 Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2023, March 27). Challenger disaster.

Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Challenger-disaster

 Damle, Siddharth B., and Susan L. Murray, “Using LOPA to Analyze Past
Catastrophic Accidents Including 2008 The Mortgage Market Crises and Space
Shuttle Challenger Disaster,” submitted to The Journal of Loss Prevention in the
Process Industries, (January 2012)

 Kerzner, Harold, Project Management: Case Studies, Wiley & Sons (2009)

 Lloyd, T., Macrae, C., & Sajid, J. (n.d.). Field of Study: Business Management
IMPLEMENTING THE PRINCE2 PROJECT MANAGEMENT METHOD IN AN
EXISTING PROJECT ENVIRONMENT Master’s Thesis

 Wikipedia.(2021,September 19).Space Shuttle Challenger.In Wikipedia,The Free

Encyclopedia.Retrieved from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger