IntroductionWelcome to the inaugural issue of the European Space Components Steering Board (SCSB) Newsletter.This biannual publication, published in April and October, aims to keep you informed of the variousactivities being co-ordinated, sponsored, and encouraged by the SCSB participants. The objective is tofurther the availability and use of European Electrical, Electronic, and Electromechanical (EEE) componentsin European space programmes. We believe that the SCSB represents a very special form of, and forum formulti-interest and multi-national co-operation and we, the Editorial Board, intend that this Newsletter shouldcontribute to and foster that spirit of co-operation.

For those of you who may not be familiar with theSCSB, our Editorial hopes to provide a briefbackground and the scope of this Board. For thoseof you familiar with the SCSB, this overview willserve as a reinforcement of that foremost Europeaninitiative. In both instances, it shows the depth ofthe undertaking the Board feels is required to meetthe technical and economic demands that currentspace programmes place on EEE components.

The Implementation Team, a group charged withinstalling the policy decisions of the SCSB,highlights some of their ongoing activities. In futureissues, more detailed and specific results from theirstudies will be presented.

Equally, the Component Technology Boardemphasises the important role that strategiccomponents will play in the near future, and sets outan ambitious plan of work to achieve its mandate.

Also in this issue, we briefly introduce two soon tobe released concrete results of the SCSB. TheEuropean Preferred Parts List will be the successorto the ESAPreferred Parts List, and the EuropeanSpace Components Information Exchange System, a development to enhance the interchange of usefulcomponent data. These "products" will serve ascatalysts to improve the way in which we do ourwork.

The publication of a newsletter is a long termcommitment. This issue is only an introduction. Infuture issues, we hope that by presenting the resultsof our work, we can engage in useful dialogue withthe space community and benefit from a broadconcurrence as we move toward our goals. ●

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Editorial Board

John Källberg, ESA/ESTEC (NL)jkaellbe@estec.esa.nl

Yves Folco, Alcatel Space Industries (F)yves.folco@space.alcatel.fr

Francois Linder, CNES Toulouse (F)francois.linder@cnes.fr

John Wong, ESA/ESTEC(NL)jwong@estec.esa.nl

In this issue……

Editorial – An Overview of the SCSB

The Implementation Team

The Component Technology Board

The European Preferred Parts List

The European Space ComponentsInformation Exchange System

The SCSB Implementation TeamPresentation Day

"Eurocomp" is directed at everyone involved inEEE space component activities in space agencies,user industries and component manufacturers, withthe aim of providing information on the activities ofthe Space Components Steering Board (SCSB) andits sub-committees. In this first Editorial we willexplain how the SCSB came into being.

The SCSB was formed in 1996 on the basis of therecommendations prepared by the SpaceComponents Ad-Hoc Committee (SCAHC). In1994/5, this Committee performed a comprehensiveand critical review of the existing and futureprospects in Europe for space components andderived a coherent and harmonised long-term actionplan commensurate with user needs, marketdemands and envisaged trends. Issued in January1996, the SCAHC’s report contained far-rangingRecommendations, the essence of which were asfollows:

R1: Maintain the ESA/SCC system ofspecifications including related qualificationprogrammes and quality-assurance controls, butimprove its organisational, operational, technicaland quality-assurance approach in order to meetusers’needs and to be compatible with markettrends.

R2: Standards and specifications for componentsshall reflect a higher degree of delegation fromcustomer to suppliers with reduced customercontrols.

R3: Whenever possible, European componentspecifications and standards should be based oninternational standards and should be promoted toobtain international recognition.

R4: Implement a stringent system for the reductionof the diversity of components for use in space,based on the usage of a European Preferred PartsList, giving preference to European components.

R5: Establish a Reliability System for EuropeanSpace Components.

R6: Establish an information-exchange system oncomponent data with access open to all Europeanusers.

R7: Enable the mutual recognition of industrialperformance in the various component disciplines,including component engineering, radiation-hardness assurance, auditing and inspection (with

Editorial

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formal certification of the latter), through theprovision of relevant and regular trainingopportunities.

R8: Improve the availability of strategicallyimportant components, giving preference toEuropean sources (microprocessors, MMICs, rad-hard ASICs, etc.).

R9: Implement, in full partnership with the users,manufacturers, commercial customers and agencies,a European Space Component Research andTechnology Programme assuring coherence withother market sectors, and cost-effectiveness.

R10: Establish a permanent Component SteeringBoard representing the interests of all of theEuropean space partners, to monitor market trends,to provide financing and to review the technologyprogrammes and its synergies, and advise onnecessary policy changes.

Following the acceptance of the SCAHC proposalsby the participating bodies, in June 1996 the SCSBwas established, in response to recommendationR10, with the mandate to implement theserecommendations. For this purpose, the SCSBestablished the following sub-committees:– An Implementation Team (IT), which elaborated

the SCAHC proposed work-plan, producing work-package descriptions and planning information for implementation of recommendations R1 through R7.

– A Component Technology Board (CTB), which prepares and supervises the component technology strategic plan and implementation programme in accordance with recommendationsR8 and R9.

The SCSB draws its membership in a balancedmanner from the European national space agenciesand ESA, the user community through Eurospace,and component manufacturers representing thetechnology spectrum.

These implementation activities are being funded byASI, BNSC, CNES, DLR and ESA. Several of thestudies have already been completed and others arein an advanced state. Furthermore, the SCSB hasrecently agreed to form itself into a new andpermanent structure to be approved by itsparticipating bodies before the end of the year. ●

-3eurocomp no.1, autumn 1999

The Implementation Team is a subgroup of theSpace Component Steering Board. Its role is todraw up, implement and control component-relatedprogrammes in the field of methodologies,infrastructure and standardisation, as approved bythe SCSB, considering external interfaces andapproval authorities.

An important part of this objective, and one of thefirst items to be addressed, is the modernising of theESA/SCC system. Along with other changesenvisaged, this is intended to lead to a significantreduction in the cost of components withoutcompromising underlying quality and reliability. Toachieve this, special consideration is being given to:

– reducing the lead time for components and their qualification programmes

– enhancing the availability of space components– introducing a new quality concept.

The Implementation Team is responsible formanaging a number of work packages funded by theEuropean space agencies and ESA, and contractedout to various institutions or companies. Thesepackages encompass:

– Review and Updating of the ESA/SCC System• New organisation• Technical updating• Introduction of the QML concept• Introduction of the Performance concept• Introduction of Plastic Encapsulated Devices

(PEDs).– Provision of a Component Information Exchange

System (Database)– Creation of a European Preferred Parts List.– Mutual Recognition (through training courses in

component disciplines).– Component Reliability Study.– ECSS (European Cooperation for Space

Standardization)• updating of essential component specifications

and preparation of new specifications.– Promotion of the European system.

In order to review if the available documents are inline with work statements and to suggest correctiveactions to the contractual authority, the monitoringof work was done by so called "project supportteams" composed of 2 on 3 members of the ITassisted when necessary by experts.

Two of the foreseen studies - concerned with thetechnical updating of the ESA/SCC system and theintroduction of plastic encapsulated devices into thesystem - have already been completed. The resultsare discussed briefly in the accompanying panels.Other study results will be presented in theforthcoming issues of Eurocomp. ●

The Implementation Te a m

Technical Updating

The European space community has expressed the firmbelief that Europe needs its own uniform specificationsystem for electronic (EEE) components, and recommendedthat the system of specifications, as elaborated by the ESA/SCC, be maintained. However, significant improvements tothe technical and quality-assurance contents have beenencouraged in the framework of the IT activities.

As a consequence, each of the ESA/SCC genericspecifications has been reviewed, together with thepertinent ESA/SCC basic specifications, in cooperation withthe manufacturers and users, with the goal of improvingefficiency without compromising the resulting quality orreliability of the components.

The prime aim of this updating exercise is to significantlyreduce component costs by introducing up-to-dateknowledge regarding failure modes into the system, byremoving redundant or unnecessary tests and requirements,by bringing screening and test flows in line with the standardpractices of the manufacturing industry, by benefitting fromin-process controls, and by reducing end-item testing as faras possible.

Plastic Encapsulated Devices

An analysis of the possible introduction of PlasticEncapsulated Devices (PEDs) into the existing ESA/SCCsystem has been carried out. The main objective of thisfeasibility study was to determine whether PEDs should becovered by the ESA/SCC system in order to achieve thewidest use of all available components.

It was concluded that they should indeed be introduced intothe system and a proposal has been made on how this canbe achieved without jeopardizing the reliability of equipmentin which PEDs will be used. The related ImplementationTeam proposal, approved by the SCSB, covers the specificdetails for procurement, screening and testing within theESA/SCC system.

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The Component Technology Board

One of the key outputs from the CTB is aprogramme of work extending up to five yearsand addressing the long-term and strategicconsiderations as well as the short-termcomponent technology needs of the Europeanspace community. The first five-year strategicplan reflects the analysis of space-systemneeds and trends, as well as componenttechnologies status and trends, and contains thefollowing dossiers:

– Silicon Integrated Circuits– Microwave & Millimetre Wave

Component Technologies– Hybrids, Multi-Chip Modules (MCM),

Interconnections & Micropackaging Technologies

– Photonic Components.

The CTB is currently preparing to implement thefirst slice of this five-year plan, and progress willbe reported in future issues of Eurocomp.

The Component Technology Board (CTB) is afunctional subcommittee of the Space ComponentSteering Board. The CTB formulates the strategicand technical recommendations related to Europeanspace component technologies. It is also responsiblefor the co-ordination of the collectively fundedEuropean space component and technologyresearch programmes and the related development,evaluation, and quality-assurance programmes.

With the main objective of broadening andenhancing the component technology base availableto the European space industry, the CTB hasformulated a medium-term European spacecomponents programme aimed at:

– Identifying and supporting new or emerging technologies that will enhance the competitive position of European space industry.

– Reducing European dependence on foreign suppliers, in particular for certain strategically important technologies.

– Ensuring synergy with other market sectors.– Minimising duplication of activities and

optimising the usage of available resources.

ESCCON 2000 Conference

20 – 24 March 2000, ESTEC, The Netherlands

The European Space Components Conferenceis organised by ESA under the auspices of theEuropean Space Components Steering Board.ESCCON 2000 will be held at a time when smallsatellites, constellations and new applicationshave created unprecedented demands on cost,availability and assurance of electroniccomponents. New management concepts andstandardisation and procurement methods haveresponded to the changes in the World market.In particular, various space componentinitiatives have drastically improved the situationin Europe. The Conference will accordinglyreflect recent achievements, discuss today’sproblems and challenges and review futureprospects and risks.

Further information is available at:

w w w. e s t e c . e s a . n l / C O N FA N N O U N / 0 0 a 0 2 /i n d e x . h t m l

Eurospace Workshop on ElectronicComponent Reliability

20 March 2000, ESTEC, The Netherlands

In conjunction with ESCCON 2000, Eurospace, the Association ofthe European Space Industry, will host an International Workshopdevoted to Electronic Component Reliability at ESTEC (NL) on 20March 2000, with ESA support.

For the last 25-30 years, MIL-HDBK-217 has remained theaccepted worldwide failure-rate standard. However the future ofMIL-HDBK-217 has become uncertain. If it is not updated andextended to cover new component technologies, the world willsoon be lacking any common standard for use in reliabilitypredictions.The purpose of the Workshop is therefore to discuss :(a) the present situation of MIL-HDBK-217 and its future evolution(b) the alternative to MIL-HDBK-217 to obtain electroniccomponent failure-rate data for spacecraft reliability assessment(c) possible European contributions to future alternatives to MIL-HDBK-217.

Further details can be found at:

www.estec.esa.nl/CONFANNOUN/00a02/index.htmland www.eurospace.org.

This has resulted in a five-year strategic plan (seePanel). ●

Upcoming Events

-5eurocomp no.1, autumn 1999

ESCIES (pronounced "s-keys"), currently beingprototyped at ESTEC, is a Web Site and underlyingdatabase intended to hold components informationand to make it freely available to registered users.These users will be the European space communityactive in the SCSB's varied activities. Following onfrom the original SCAHC recommendation for aComponents Information Exchange System,ESTEC commissioned a study on how best toimplement it. The results of this study werereported in two parts. The first part of the study wasa community-wide consultation on the ‘what’,‘where’and ‘why’definitions for the system. In thefirst instance, it found widespread support acrossthe space-component community. Companiesconfirmed a need for this pan-European system, aswell as expressing a willingness to contribute datato sustain it. This part of the report concluded by

defining the types of data that the communitywould want to make available.

The second part of the report concentrated on the‘how’segment of the system. The result of this partof the study indicated the use of the WWW. Thismodel is therefore the basis for the prototype. Thisarticle will report on this aspect of the system.

The Web Server has already been running on theESTEC Intranet (inside the firewall) for somemonths and has been demonstrated both to theImplementation Team and to participants in thelatter’s Presentation Day in July. The organisationof the site is based on private or public data, datatopic and then data set by data provider. As aninformation-exchange system with many potentialdata providers, it is felt important that users can

The European Space ComponentsInformation Exchange System

EUROPEAN COOPERATION

FOR SPACE STANDARDIZATION

The management of the European Preferred PartsList (EPPL) is described in ECSS document Q-60-01. The List itself falls under theauthority of the Space Components SteeringBoard (SCSB) in partnership with ESA,national space agencies and European spaceindustry, and as such contributes to the promotion ofEuropean space policy. The List is established andmaintained by a contractor applying the rules andselection criteria of ECSS-Q-60-01. A group ofexperts, the Technical Authority, has beennominated by the SCSB to supervise this activity.

The objective of the EPPLis to direct the user to alimited number of component types, covering alldesign applications, to achieve cost reduction andprocurement effectiveness. Type reduction andstandardisation are the most important filters in theestablishment of the List. This activity is based oncomponent knowledge (comparison) andinformation obtained both from manufacturers andusers.

The European Preferred Parts List is divided intotwo parts:– Part I components have sufficient data to permit

their use without any special provision, on

condition that they meet the application requirements.

– Part II components have minimum evaluation data demonstrating capability to satisfy space-application requirements, but additional testing effort may be necessary to satisfy specific programme requirements.

The European Preferred Parts List will be availableon the World Wide Web after acceptance by theTechnical Authority, the SCSB Chairman and theapproval of the ECSS Technical Panel Chairman.Updating of the list is initially foreseen every sixmonths.

Michel HauryTechnical Authority Chairmanmhaury@estec.esa.nl ●

The European Preferred Parts List (ECSS-Q-60-01)

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identify the source of the data clearly and be able tocontact the data provider for further information. A"feedback form" is provided for this purpose. Userregistration is catered for by an online form anddiffering access rights can be requested depending

on whether or not theuser will also becontributing data.

The public data areais intended forinformation that ispublished withoutrestriction, such asthe ESA/SCCSpecifications. Theprivate data areacan only beaccessed with aUser ID and aPassword, andcertain data setswithin it mayrequire furtheruser verificationto be provided.

The Space Components Steering Board (SCSB)scheduled a day of presentations on theImplementation Team’s activities on 7 July 1999 atESA/ESTEC, in Noordwijk (NL). The purpose ofthe event was to inform the space-componentscommunity of the status of the Team’s activities.Overviews of important initiatives such as theEuropean Qualified Manufacturers Listing (QML)and Performance Specifications, among others, werepresented.

The day’s overall agenda was as follows :– Presentation of the complete spectrum of the

Team’s activities– ESCIES Demonstration– ESA/SCC Technical Update– ESA/SCC QML Presentation– ESA/SCC Performance Study

A generic search engine is being built that workswith all of the site's HTML documents, making useof selected keywords. The search will be context-sensitive so that if, for example, a search is selectedfrom the EPPL area, only the EPPL data will besearched. Alternatively, a menu choice will allow asearch of the whole ESCIES site for the keyword,which for example could be a part type.

In addition to HTML, much of the prototypeconsists of PDF documents. For these, differentsearch strategies, including full text search, arebeing investigated. Presently, the favoured approachis one similar to that for the HTML documentsthrough the use of keywords. This enables a rapidand integrated search approach for the siteirrespective of file type.

The development of ESCIES is proceeding welland the results being obtained with the prototypeare encouraging. Anybody seeking furtherinformation or wishing to contribute data at anearly stage is encouraged to contact Tony Gouder atESTEC (e-mail agouder @estec.esa.nl).

The ESCIES Web Site is being developed underESTEC contract by TERMA Elektronik AS. ●

SCSB Implementation Team Presentation Day– European PPL– PED Activity.

A total of 60 participants - users, componentmanufacturers and space agencies - attended thePresentation Day. A small poll afterwards showedmost of them considered it a day well spent and thatthe information they had received was extremelyuseful. They also asked to receive regularinformation on the Implementation Team’s activitiesin the future.

The Presentation Handouts are available via theWorld Wide Web from the ESAexternal home pageat :

www.estec.esa.nl/qcswww/sccpage.html ●

Published by: ESA Publications Divisionc/o ESTEC, PO Box 299, 2200 AG Noordwijk, The NetherlandsTel. (31) 71 565 3400 - Fax (31) 71 565 5433