Notching and Force Limiting Workshop (NFLW)

NFLW is a one-day computer workshop that is available only as an optional follow-on to STDI (Structural Test Design and Interpretation) or VTSS (Vibration Testing of Small Satellites) course.  Several Microsoft Excel spreadsheets will be provided to be used in class.  The instructor will guide the class into completing the first spreadsheet by filling in the applicable equations, as covered in STDI and VTSS.

The objectives of this course are for you to “learn by doing”.  The goal is for you to be able to design technically justifiable force limits, manual notches, and response limits for future tests.

Completion of one of either STDI or VTSS within 12 months of NFLW (preferably immediately before NFLW) or the instructor’s permission in advance.  Each participant must have his or her own laptop computer loaded with Microsoft Excel.

Tom Sarafin is President and Chief Engineer of Instar Engineering and Consulting, Inc. He has worked full time in the space industry since 1979 as a structural engineer, a mechanical systems engineer, a project manager, and a consultant.  Since founding Instar in 1993, he’s consulted for NASA, DARPA, the DOD Space Test Program, Lockheed Martin, DigitalGlobe (Maxar), Sierra Nevada Corp, Spaceflight Industries, Millennium Space Systems (Boeing), and other organizations.  He was a key member of the team that developed NASA-STD-5020, “Requirements for Threaded Fastening Systems in Spaceflight Hardware” (March 2012).  He is the editor and principal author of Spacecraft Structures and Mechanisms:  From Concept to Launch and is a contributing author to Space Mission Analysis and Design.  He’s also the principal author of a series of papers titled “Vibration Testing of Small Satellites.”  Since 1995, he has taught over 300 courses to more than 6000 engineers and managers in the aerospace industry.