Publications Details
Results and conclusions test capabilities task group summary report
This annotated briefing documents an economic analysis of Sandia`s system-level test facilities maintained and operated by the Design, Evaluation, and Test Technology Center 9700. The study was divided into four primary sub-tasks: (1) Estimation of the future system-level test workload, (2) Development of a consistent economic model to estimate the cost of maintaining and operating the test facilities, (3) Determination of the availability of viable alternative test sites, and (4) Assessment of the potential savings through reduction of excess capacity under various facility-closure scenarios. The analysis indicated that potential savings from closing all facilities could approach $6 million per year. However, large uncertainties in these savings remove any sound economic arguments for such closure: it is possible that testing at alternative sites could cost more than maintaining the current set of system-level test facilities. Finally, a number of programmatic risks incurred by facility closure were identified. Consideration of facility closure requires a careful weighing of any projected economic benefit against these programmatic risks. This summary report covers the briefing given to upper management. A more detailed discussion of the data and analyses is given in the full report, available for internal use from the technical library.