Design Process Error-Proofing: Engineering Peer Review Lessons From NASA

Abstract

This report describes the state of design reviews observed at NASA and research into improving review practices. There are many types of reviews at NASA. Formal, programmatic project reviews such as the Preliminary Design Review and Critical Design Review are a required part of every project and mission development. However, the informal and technical engineering peer reviews that support teams’ work on such projects are informal, ad hoc, and inconsistent across the organization. The goal of this work is to identify best practices and lessons learned from NASA’s review experience, benchmark against industry techniques, and develop methodologies to improve the process. Thus far, the research has determined that the organization, composition, scope, and execution, including the use of information technology and structured design methodologies, of reviews all impact the technical, engineering peer reviews to help NASA work towards error-proofing the design process.