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>> NASA JOHNSON SPACE CENTER
IS HOME TO AN ACCREDITED
INSPECTION AND TEST FACILITY.
THE RECEIVING INSPECTION
AND TEST FACILITY,
ALSO KNOWN AS THE RITF,
IS CONSIDERED A CRITICAL
SUPPORT ASSET
FOR ENGINEERING DESIGN.
THE ACCREDITED FACILITY
REPRESENTS EXCELLENCE IN
HARDWARE TESTING AND ANALYSIS,
MEETING ALL REQUIREMENTS
FOR POSSIBLE LITIGATION.
THE RITF'S SCREENING SERVICES
SUBJECT HARDWARE, PARTS,
COMPONENTS AND RAW MATERIALS
TO A RIGOROUS REGIMEN
OF TESTING TO IDENTIFY
IF THEY ARE SUBSTANDARD.
TESTING CAN ALSO REVEAL
IF A PART IS COUNTERFEIT.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
A COUNTERFEIT PART
AND A DEFECTIVE PART
IS COUNTERFEIT PARTS ARE
PURPOSEFULLY MANUFACTURED
AND SOLD WITH
THE INTENT TO DECEIVE.
THE DEVELOPMENT AND DISTRIBUTION
OF COUNTERFEIT PARTS
IS A GROWING PROBLEM
IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE RISK IS THAT CUSTOMERS
PURCHASE DEFECTIVE PRODUCTS
WHILE UNDER THE ASSUMPTION
THEY HAVE PURCHASED
HIGH QUALITY PARTS
FROM REPUTABLE MANUFACTURERS.
RITF SCREENING SERVICES ALLOW
AEROSPACE SYSTEMS DEVELOPERS
TO ASSESS THE PERFORMANCE
OF THEIR HARDWARE IN THE HARSH
ENVIRONMENT OF SPACE,
BUT CAN ALSO BE APPLIED
TO NON-SPACE ENVIRONMENTS,
FOR EXAMPLE, OFF-SHORE
OR SUBSEA SYSTEMS TESTING.
ONE OF THE DISTINCT QUALITIES
OF THE RITF COUNTERFEIT PARTS
DETECTION PROCESS
IS THE NON-DESTRUCTIVE TO
DESTRUCTIVE SCREENING METHODS,
OR END TO END TESTING.
THE TEAM HAS DEVELOPED
TOOLS AND PROCEDURES
TO SYSTEMATICALLY ANALYZE
A FAILED OR SUSPECT PART.
IT STARTS WITH
A NON-INVASIVE ASSESSMENT,
AND PROCEEDS TO
IDENTIFICATION OF CAUSE.
THE PROCESS PRESERVES
THE INTEGRITY AND FUNCTION
OF THE COMPONENT
AS LONG AS POSSIBLE.
THE APPROACH IS VALUABLE
IN SUSTAINING SYSTEM FUNCTION
WHEN PARTS ARE
NO LONGER AVAILABLE
FROM THE ORIGINAL MANUFACTURER,
AND MUST BE OBTAINED
FROM OTHER SOURCES.
THE ABILITY TO IDENTIFY
COMPLIANT PARTS
WITHOUT DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
HAS ALLOWED EXISTING SYSTEMS
TO STAY IN USE.
THE RITF OFFERS
MORE THAN 25 DIFFERENT TYPES OF
STANDARD FAILURE ANALYSIS TESTS.
WE CAN ALSO DEVELOP
SPECIALIZED TESTS
TO EVALUATE AND DELIVER DATA
BASED ON SPECIFIC APPLICATION,
SPECIFICATIONS,
PERFORMANCE CRITERIA,
ENVIRONMENT AND MORE.
THIS REMARKABLE FACILITY
IS SUPPORTED BY A TEAM
OF DIVERSE ENGINEERS,
SCIENTISTS AND TECHNICIANS
WITH SIGNIFICANT YEARS
OF EXPERIENCE.
THE FACILITY OFFERS
ONGOING TRAINING
FOR NASA TEAM MEMBERS
AS WELL AS EXTERNAL CLIENTS
WHO MAY BE INTERESTED.
THE CLASSES FOR
HANDS-ON TRAINING
AND WORKMANSHIP STANDARDS
HAS TRAINED MORE THAN
1,400 ENGINEERS, TECHNICIANS
AND INSPECTORS ANNUALLY
IN THE AREAS OF ESD, SOLDER,
SURFACE MOUNT TECHNOLOGY,
CRIMPING, CONFORMAL COATING,
AND FIBER OPTIC TERMINATIONS.
THE TRAINING ENSURES
CONSISTENT SKILLS
WITH PROVEN TECHNIQUES
AND PROFICIENCY OF
TECHNICIANS AND INSPECTORS.
THE RITF TEAM IS EAGER
TO PROVIDE YOU WITH
TESTING AND ANALYSIS TOOLS
AND EXPERTISE
TO ASSIST YOU IN
COMPLYING WITH REQUIREMENTS,
UNDERSTANDING DESIGN
LIMITATIONS,
OPTIMIZING FUNCTIONALITY,
AND GETTING TO
THE ROOT-CAUSE OF FAILURES.
WE ARE LEADERS IN
THE BATTLE AGAINST COUNTERFEIT
ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS,
HELPING ENSURE THE SAFETY,
RELIABILITY
AND QUALITY OF HARDWARE.
THROUGH FAILURE ANALYSIS TESTING
AND COUNTERFEIT PARTS DETECTION,
NASA IS LEVERAGING ITS ASSETS
AND CAPABILITIES TO DEVELOP
NEW, COLLABORATIVE PARTNERSHIPS.