Structured approach for design reuse decisions in communications satellite Product Lines

In this paper, we extend prior work on Product Line reuse and platform design optimization to develop a framework for making reuse decisions while factoring in robustness to market uncertainty. We explore Product Line strategies for a portfolio of two communication satellite platforms that focused on optimizing investment decisions involving varying degrees of payload capability as a function of platform technology. Parametric models for satellite platform cost and mass, and the corresponding impact on available payload capacity were developed for three platform reuse strategies. First, the power subsystem capability was scaled as a function of payload power. Second, each platform in the portfolio utilized an enveloping power subsystem configuration to meet their full range of power levels. Third, the power subsystem was scaled using improved technology (i.e. more efficient solar cells), requiring additional upfront investment. Net present value (NPV) analysis was used to compare the economic performance, from the satellite manufacturer's perspective, of each strategy in the presence of market uncertainty. The results show that NPV improves when optimizing hardware for narrower power ranges, compared with deploying enveloping designs. Despite the higher development costs, the use of improved technology was shown to further improve economic value across the product portfolio.