Vehicle Assembly Building Mods Begin for Ares I-X

Preparation for the Ares I-X test flight, scheduled for next year, has begun in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) with the removal of a Shuttle platform in High Bay 3.

The C north platform, made of steel weighing nearly 380,000 pounds and located more than 245 feet up, is the uppermost Shuttle platform. The multilevel platform measures 70 feet by 45 feet by 47 feet. United Space Alliance workers removed the platform because it would have interfered with the rollout of the Ares I-X stack. The task was approved once it was determined that the platform removal would not impact Shuttle processing.

A NASA/USA cross-functional integration team planned the project. The group included personnel from engineering, operations, ground systems support, project management and environmental and safety organizations. Once the plan was complete, it took a month to prepare and remove the platform.

The work included stripping the platform of extraneous parts, such as railings and loose equipment, and disconnecting the platform’s umbilical connections for electrical, pneumatics, communications, fire prevention and water systems. Workers then bolted the platform to the rail supports that are attached to the building, attached the platform to a new synthetic sling that was fabricated for the lift and hooked it to the 325-ton overhead crane. Next, they unbolted the rail supports from the walls of the facility and lowered the platform into the VAB transfer aisle onto a transporter to be removed from the building.

“This is the first step in our journey to get the VAB ready for the test launch, and it feels good to be underway,” said Jeffrey Moist, USA’s Deputy Director of Vehicle Operations, Planning and Development.

The next step, according to Moist, will be the installation of an aluminum extension platform on the 190-foot “E-roof” north level of High Bay 3. This platform will provide access to the upper stage of the Ares I rocket. Fabrication of the platform is underway, and the installation is expected to take place this fall.

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