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    SpaceX ..vision . organization .Elon Musk vision , presentation by Univ of Cincinnati

    SpaceX ..vision . organization .Elon Musk vision , presentation by Univ of Cincinnati

    F5 months ago 509

    This presentation explores the founding of SpaceX under Elon Musk, detailing his vision for affordable space travel, key innovations like the Falcon rockets, and the company's organizational structure. It highlights strategic partnerships, facilities across the U.S., and ongoing efforts towards human missions to Mars, providing insights into how SpaceX is redefining the space industry.

    SpaceX founding , Musk’s vision, facilities, organization, personnel
Jim Rauf
OLLI Fall 2023 1
    1/24
    1 Introduction: topics , some basics and rocket pioneers 
2 SpaceX founding , Musk’s vision, facilities, organization, personnel
3 SpaceX and NASA commercial funding
4 Falcon rockets and engines , Falcon 1, Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy
5 Dragon spacecraft , Cargo Dragon and Crew Dragon
6 Super Heavy booster and engines and Starship spacecraft
7 Starship competition for Artemis Moon Human Landing System
8 Musk’s Mars vision , plans and challenges
OLLI Fall 2023 2
    2/24
    Company Description
• SpaceX offers a family of launch vehicles that improves 
launch reliability and low cost
• Company philosophy : simplicity, reliability and cost 
effectiveness are closely connected
• SpaceX corporate structure is flat - business processes 
are lean, resulting in fast decision-making and product 
delivery
• SpaceX design and manufacturing facilities are located 
near the Los Angeles International Airport
• SpaceX vehicle design teams are co- located with 
production and quality assurance staff 
• SpaceX has developed and flown the Falcon 1 launch 
vehicle, the Falcon 9 medium-lift launch vehicle, the 
Falcon Heavy launch vehicle and Dragon space craft- the 
first commercially produced spacecraft to visit the 
International Space Station (ISS)
• SpaceX operates propulsion and structural test facilities 
in Central Texas, launch sites in Florida and California, and 
a commercial orbital launch site in South Texas
• SpaceX customer are commercial, government and 
international
• NASA has awarded SpaceX contracts to transport 
astronauts to space as well as to launch scientific 
satellites
• SpaceX’s first crewed test flight with the Crew Dragon 
spacecraft launched in May 2020
• NASA has certified the Falcon 9 / Crew Dragon system for 
human spaceflight
• SpaceX is providing operational missions to the 
International Space Station
• SpaceX is on contract with the U.S. Space Force for 
multiple missions on the Falcon family of launch vehicles
OLLI Fall 2023 3
    3/24
    Founding Elon Musk
• Elon Musk was born on June 28, 1971 in Pretoria, South 
Africa
• He grew up in South Africa and attended school through 
high school
• He moved to Canada at age 17 to avoid mandatory 
service in the South African military and obtained his 
Canadian citizenship (Mother was Canadian)
• Musk became a U.S. citizen in 2002
• He studied briefly at Pretoria University in South Africa, 
Queen's University in Canada, and Stanford University in 
the US
• Elon Musk education includes physics and economics 
degrees from the University of Pennsylvania
• He is the current CEO&Chief Product Architect of Tesla,
Inc
• He is CEO of Solar City
• He is CEO & CTO of SpaceX
• He is the founder of the Boring Company 
• He is primary owner of X Corp
• He is co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI
• He is president of the Musk Foundation
OLLI Fall 2023 4
    4/24
    Founding Elon Musk
• In early 2002 Elon Musk was pursuing a grand scheme to 
rekindle public interest in sending humans to Mars
• Musk’s idea was to place a small greenhouse laden with 
seeds and nutrient gel on the Martian surface to 
establish life there, if only temporarily
• He figured out a mission that would cost about $15 to 
$20 million which isn't a lot of money but it's about a 
10th of what a low-cost NASA mission would be
• The idea was called Mars Oasis
• The plan was to put a small robotic land rover on the 
surface of Mars with seeds and dehydrated nutrient gel
• They would hydrate upon landing and you'd have plants 
growing in a Martian radiation, gravity conditions
• And you'd also be maintaining, essentially, life support 
systems on the surface of Mars
• He’d already talked to contractors who would build it for 
a comparatively low cost
• Estimated mission cost $15 to $20 million
• The problem was launching it
OLLI Fall 2023 5
    5/24
    Founding Elon Musk
• The lowest cost launch vehicles in US is Boeing's Delta 2 
which costs about $50 million
• Musk made three visits to Moscow to
 look at buying a Russian launch
• He actually did get to a deal
• Too many complications - 
 Too high a risk
• On the flight home, Musk recalls:
• “I was trying to understand why rockets were so 
expensive
• The lowest cost to make anything is the spot value of the 
material constituents
• It is a question of how efficient you can be about getting 
the atoms from raw material state to rocket shape.” 
• In early 2002 Musk met with aerospace engineers at a 
hotel in Los Angeles International Airport to discuss 
founding a space launch company, with reportedly some 
having scoffed at the idea
• According to filings, SpaceX was incorporated on 14 
March 2002
• The company was named "Space Exploration 
Technologies Corporation” it was quickly changed to be 
"SpaceX” 
• In April 2002 he invited five to join the company as early 
employees: Michael Griffin, Jim Cantrell, John Garvey, 
Tom Mueller, and Chris Thompson
• Mueller and Thompson became the company's first and 
second employee respectively
• Musk provided half of his $180 million from PayPal stocks 
to the newly founded company securing both employees 
with two-years' worth of salary
OLLI Fall 2023 6
    6/24
    Founding Early Employees
• Musk assumed the role of Chief Engineer, after having 
offered the title to Griffin who did not join SpaceX
• He is now CEO and Chief Technical Officer
• Tom Mueller(ex-TRW) was in charge of developing rocket 
engines, propellant tanks and plumbing
• Chris Thompson (ex- McDonnell Douglas)was in charge 
of making the rocket's body and couplings
• Hans Koenigsmann (ex- Microcosm Inc )-was in charge of 
making the rocket's avionics (electronic systems)
• In August 2002, Gwynne Shotwell (ex- Microcosm Inc) 
was hired as the head of sales for the company
• At first, SpaceX's employees would meet at hotels in 
airports, but later the company headquartered at a 
building in 13El Segundo, California
OLLI Fall 2023 7
Tom Mueller Chris Thompson
Hans Koenigsmann Gwynne Shotwell
    7/24
    Elon Musk Vision for SpaceX
Make spaceflight routine and affordable
Make humans a multi-planet species
Colonize Mars
Define the Vision
Communicate it Relentlessly
Work Towards Small Wins
OLLI Fall 2023 8
    8/24
    Company Locations
OLLI Fall 2023 9
• SpaceX started out in California in 
2002
• Its first Falcon 1 test launches were in 
the Marshall Islands
• It is now primarily U.S. based
• SpaceX has offices, launchpads, 
factories, and test facilities in:
• California
• Florida
• Texas
• Virginia 
• Washington 
• Washington DC
    9/24
    Facilities
• SpaceX operates launch facilities:
• Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40)
• Vandenberg Space Force Base Space Launch 
Complex 4 E (SLC-4E)
• Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A (LC39A)
• Brownsville South Texas Launch Site (Starbase) 
• SpaceX operates test rocket test facility :
• McGregor, Texas 
• SpaceX operates rocket and spacecraft manufacturing 
facility:
• Hawthorne , California
• Headquarters
• SpaceX operates Starlink manufacturing facility:
• Redmond , Washington
OLLI Fall 2023 10
    10/24
    Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 11
SpaceX's go-to launchpad is SLC-40
Rockets are horizontally assembled in a building just 
south of the launchpad, rolled out to the stand, and 
slowly tilted vertical
    11/24
    Vandenberg Air Force Base Launch Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 12
Space Launch Complex-4 — Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
Falcon 9 v1.1 at SLC-4E September 2013
Landing Pad
    12/24
    Kennedy Space Center Launch Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 13
Launch Complex 39A — Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Launch Complex 39A
Rockets are horizontally assembled in the SpaceX building and rolled 
out to the stand, and slowly tilted vertical
    13/24
    Starbase Launch Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 14
Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas 
• Starbase is a launch site, production, and 
development facility for Starship rockets, located 
at Boca Chica, Texas
• In early 2018, SpaceX announced that the launch 
site would be used exclusively for launching the 
Starship space craft using the Super Heavy 
booster
• Between 2018 and 2020, the site added 
significant rocket production and test capacity
    14/24
    Rocket Engine Test Facility
• SpaceX needed a test site for the Merlin and Kestrel 
engines
• In 2002, the company rented a space at the Mojave Air 
and Space Port to test the turbopumps
• One time, black sooty clouds from the turbopump 
enveloped the air traffic control tower
• A bigger testing facility was needed, especially the higher 
thrust Merlin engine
• SpaceX finally picked a testing site at McGregor, Texas 
that was previously owned by the bankrupted Beal 
Aerospace
OLLI Fall 2023 15
SpaceX rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas
    15/24
    Design and Manufacturing Facility
• SpaceX adopted:
• A “flat” organization structure
• Vertical integration manufacturing model
• Design and build major parts in house
• Engines
• Avionics
• Structures
• Heat shields
• Proven technology
• Emphasize manufacturing efficiency
• Minimize costs by avoiding external suppliers
• Assemble rockets horizontally
• NASA “stacks” rockets vertically
• Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB)
OLLI Fall 2023 16
    16/24
    Design and Manufacturing Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 17
SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, CA
    17/24
    Rocket Engine Test facility
OLLI Fall 2023 18
• SpaceX needed a facility to test-fire noisy 
rocket engines and launch prototype 
spacecraft
• SpaceX took over the mothballed Beal 
Aerospace facility in McGregor, Texas
• The site already had rocket-engine-test 
stands
• It is remote enough to not bother too 
many locals
• It is close enough to habitation to support 
an engineering workforce
    18/24
    Starlink Production and Test Facility
OLLI Fall 2023 19
Starlink Satellite Factory — Redmond, Washington
• In 2015, Musk introduced a plan to 
surround Earth in thousands of 
satellites to bring high-speed 
broadband internet to everyone on 
the planet
• The project is called Starlink
• SpacX has since built a facility in 
Redmond, Washington, to build and 
test satellites 
• The plan is to build and launch 
roughly 12,000 low-Earth-orbit 
satellites
    19/24
    Organization Leadership Team
OLLI Fall 2023 20
    20/24
    Organization Board of Directors
• The board of directors has different 
types of education and wide range of 
experience in different industries
• Education histories include degrees in 
philosophy and political science, law 
French cuisine, computer engineering, 
and mechanical engineering
• Some previous experiences:
• Working at Google
• Senior associate at Wilson Sonsini
Goodrich & Rosati
• Associate at Davies Ward Phillips & 
Vineberg LLP
• CEO at Me.dium
• Co-founder at The Kitchen Community
• Experience with Tesla Motors, PayPal, 
Netscape, and Impulse Space Propulsion
OLLI Fall 2023 21
    21/24
    Personnel
• Total employment ~ 12,000 employees 49.8% of SpaceX 
employees are White
• 86.3% male employees
• 13.7% female employees 
• 38% are aged from 30 to 40 years old 
• Most (38.9%) employees earn around $40,000 to $60,000 
each year
• Most hold the following degrees:
• 54.7% have a Bachelor’s Degree
• 19.1% have an Associate Degree 
• 10.6% have a Master’s Degree 
• 8.0% have a High School Diploma
• 1.6% have a Doctorate Degree
• Most prominent employees’ majors : 
• 24.9% have a major in Mechanical Engineering 
• 15% have a major in Business 
• 10.6% have a major in Aerospace Engineering
• 8.1% have a major in Electrical Engineering 
• 5.3% have a major in Aviation
• 3.9% have a major in Precision Metal Working
OLLI Fall 2023 22
    22/24
    Payoff
OLLI Fall 2023 23
Bing Videos
    23/24
    Next Session
SpaceX and NASA commercial funding
OLLI Fall 2023 24
    24/24

    SpaceX ..vision . organization .Elon Musk vision , presentation by Univ of Cincinnati

    • 1. SpaceX founding , Musk’s vision, facilities, organization, personnel Jim Rauf OLLI Fall 2023 1
    • 2. 1 Introduction: topics , some basics and rocket pioneers 2 SpaceX founding , Musk’s vision, facilities, organization, personnel 3 SpaceX and NASA commercial funding 4 Falcon rockets and engines , Falcon 1, Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy 5 Dragon spacecraft , Cargo Dragon and Crew Dragon 6 Super Heavy booster and engines and Starship spacecraft 7 Starship competition for Artemis Moon Human Landing System 8 Musk’s Mars vision , plans and challenges OLLI Fall 2023 2
    • 3. Company Description • SpaceX offers a family of launch vehicles that improves launch reliability and low cost • Company philosophy : simplicity, reliability and cost effectiveness are closely connected • SpaceX corporate structure is flat - business processes are lean, resulting in fast decision-making and product delivery • SpaceX design and manufacturing facilities are located near the Los Angeles International Airport • SpaceX vehicle design teams are co- located with production and quality assurance staff • SpaceX has developed and flown the Falcon 1 launch vehicle, the Falcon 9 medium-lift launch vehicle, the Falcon Heavy launch vehicle and Dragon space craft- the first commercially produced spacecraft to visit the International Space Station (ISS) • SpaceX operates propulsion and structural test facilities in Central Texas, launch sites in Florida and California, and a commercial orbital launch site in South Texas • SpaceX customer are commercial, government and international • NASA has awarded SpaceX contracts to transport astronauts to space as well as to launch scientific satellites • SpaceX’s first crewed test flight with the Crew Dragon spacecraft launched in May 2020 • NASA has certified the Falcon 9 / Crew Dragon system for human spaceflight • SpaceX is providing operational missions to the International Space Station • SpaceX is on contract with the U.S. Space Force for multiple missions on the Falcon family of launch vehicles OLLI Fall 2023 3
    • 4. Founding Elon Musk • Elon Musk was born on June 28, 1971 in Pretoria, South Africa • He grew up in South Africa and attended school through high school • He moved to Canada at age 17 to avoid mandatory service in the South African military and obtained his Canadian citizenship (Mother was Canadian) • Musk became a U.S. citizen in 2002 • He studied briefly at Pretoria University in South Africa, Queen's University in Canada, and Stanford University in the US • Elon Musk education includes physics and economics degrees from the University of Pennsylvania • He is the current CEO&Chief Product Architect of Tesla, Inc • He is CEO of Solar City • He is CEO & CTO of SpaceX • He is the founder of the Boring Company • He is primary owner of X Corp • He is co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI • He is president of the Musk Foundation OLLI Fall 2023 4
    • 5. Founding Elon Musk • In early 2002 Elon Musk was pursuing a grand scheme to rekindle public interest in sending humans to Mars • Musk’s idea was to place a small greenhouse laden with seeds and nutrient gel on the Martian surface to establish life there, if only temporarily • He figured out a mission that would cost about $15 to $20 million which isn't a lot of money but it's about a 10th of what a low-cost NASA mission would be • The idea was called Mars Oasis • The plan was to put a small robotic land rover on the surface of Mars with seeds and dehydrated nutrient gel • They would hydrate upon landing and you'd have plants growing in a Martian radiation, gravity conditions • And you'd also be maintaining, essentially, life support systems on the surface of Mars • He’d already talked to contractors who would build it for a comparatively low cost • Estimated mission cost $15 to $20 million • The problem was launching it OLLI Fall 2023 5
    • 6. Founding Elon Musk • The lowest cost launch vehicles in US is Boeing's Delta 2 which costs about $50 million • Musk made three visits to Moscow to look at buying a Russian launch • He actually did get to a deal • Too many complications - Too high a risk • On the flight home, Musk recalls: • “I was trying to understand why rockets were so expensive • The lowest cost to make anything is the spot value of the material constituents • It is a question of how efficient you can be about getting the atoms from raw material state to rocket shape.” • In early 2002 Musk met with aerospace engineers at a hotel in Los Angeles International Airport to discuss founding a space launch company, with reportedly some having scoffed at the idea • According to filings, SpaceX was incorporated on 14 March 2002 • The company was named "Space Exploration Technologies Corporation” it was quickly changed to be "SpaceX” • In April 2002 he invited five to join the company as early employees: Michael Griffin, Jim Cantrell, John Garvey, Tom Mueller, and Chris Thompson • Mueller and Thompson became the company's first and second employee respectively • Musk provided half of his $180 million from PayPal stocks to the newly founded company securing both employees with two-years' worth of salary OLLI Fall 2023 6
    • 7. Founding Early Employees • Musk assumed the role of Chief Engineer, after having offered the title to Griffin who did not join SpaceX • He is now CEO and Chief Technical Officer • Tom Mueller(ex-TRW) was in charge of developing rocket engines, propellant tanks and plumbing • Chris Thompson (ex- McDonnell Douglas)was in charge of making the rocket's body and couplings • Hans Koenigsmann (ex- Microcosm Inc )-was in charge of making the rocket's avionics (electronic systems) • In August 2002, Gwynne Shotwell (ex- Microcosm Inc) was hired as the head of sales for the company • At first, SpaceX's employees would meet at hotels in airports, but later the company headquartered at a building in 13El Segundo, California OLLI Fall 2023 7 Tom Mueller Chris Thompson Hans Koenigsmann Gwynne Shotwell
    • 8. Elon Musk Vision for SpaceX Make spaceflight routine and affordable Make humans a multi-planet species Colonize Mars Define the Vision Communicate it Relentlessly Work Towards Small Wins OLLI Fall 2023 8
    • 9. Company Locations OLLI Fall 2023 9 • SpaceX started out in California in 2002 • Its first Falcon 1 test launches were in the Marshall Islands • It is now primarily U.S. based • SpaceX has offices, launchpads, factories, and test facilities in: • California • Florida • Texas • Virginia • Washington • Washington DC
    • 10. Facilities • SpaceX operates launch facilities: • Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) • Vandenberg Space Force Base Space Launch Complex 4 E (SLC-4E) • Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A (LC39A) • Brownsville South Texas Launch Site (Starbase) • SpaceX operates test rocket test facility : • McGregor, Texas • SpaceX operates rocket and spacecraft manufacturing facility: • Hawthorne , California • Headquarters • SpaceX operates Starlink manufacturing facility: • Redmond , Washington OLLI Fall 2023 10
    • 11. Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Facility OLLI Fall 2023 11 SpaceX's go-to launchpad is SLC-40 Rockets are horizontally assembled in a building just south of the launchpad, rolled out to the stand, and slowly tilted vertical
    • 12. Vandenberg Air Force Base Launch Facility OLLI Fall 2023 12 Space Launch Complex-4 — Vandenberg Air Force Base, California Falcon 9 v1.1 at SLC-4E September 2013 Landing Pad
    • 13. Kennedy Space Center Launch Facility OLLI Fall 2023 13 Launch Complex 39A — Kennedy Space Center, Florida Launch Complex 39A Rockets are horizontally assembled in the SpaceX building and rolled out to the stand, and slowly tilted vertical
    • 14. Starbase Launch Facility OLLI Fall 2023 14 Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas • Starbase is a launch site, production, and development facility for Starship rockets, located at Boca Chica, Texas • In early 2018, SpaceX announced that the launch site would be used exclusively for launching the Starship space craft using the Super Heavy booster • Between 2018 and 2020, the site added significant rocket production and test capacity
    • 15. Rocket Engine Test Facility • SpaceX needed a test site for the Merlin and Kestrel engines • In 2002, the company rented a space at the Mojave Air and Space Port to test the turbopumps • One time, black sooty clouds from the turbopump enveloped the air traffic control tower • A bigger testing facility was needed, especially the higher thrust Merlin engine • SpaceX finally picked a testing site at McGregor, Texas that was previously owned by the bankrupted Beal Aerospace OLLI Fall 2023 15 SpaceX rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas
    • 16. Design and Manufacturing Facility • SpaceX adopted: • A “flat” organization structure • Vertical integration manufacturing model • Design and build major parts in house • Engines • Avionics • Structures • Heat shields • Proven technology • Emphasize manufacturing efficiency • Minimize costs by avoiding external suppliers • Assemble rockets horizontally • NASA “stacks” rockets vertically • Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) OLLI Fall 2023 16
    • 17. Design and Manufacturing Facility OLLI Fall 2023 17 SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, CA
    • 18. Rocket Engine Test facility OLLI Fall 2023 18 • SpaceX needed a facility to test-fire noisy rocket engines and launch prototype spacecraft • SpaceX took over the mothballed Beal Aerospace facility in McGregor, Texas • The site already had rocket-engine-test stands • It is remote enough to not bother too many locals • It is close enough to habitation to support an engineering workforce
    • 19. Starlink Production and Test Facility OLLI Fall 2023 19 Starlink Satellite Factory — Redmond, Washington • In 2015, Musk introduced a plan to surround Earth in thousands of satellites to bring high-speed broadband internet to everyone on the planet • The project is called Starlink • SpacX has since built a facility in Redmond, Washington, to build and test satellites • The plan is to build and launch roughly 12,000 low-Earth-orbit satellites
    • 20. Organization Leadership Team OLLI Fall 2023 20
    • 21. Organization Board of Directors • The board of directors has different types of education and wide range of experience in different industries • Education histories include degrees in philosophy and political science, law French cuisine, computer engineering, and mechanical engineering • Some previous experiences: • Working at Google • Senior associate at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati • Associate at Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP • CEO at Me.dium • Co-founder at The Kitchen Community • Experience with Tesla Motors, PayPal, Netscape, and Impulse Space Propulsion OLLI Fall 2023 21
    • 22. Personnel • Total employment ~ 12,000 employees 49.8% of SpaceX employees are White • 86.3% male employees • 13.7% female employees • 38% are aged from 30 to 40 years old • Most (38.9%) employees earn around $40,000 to $60,000 each year • Most hold the following degrees: • 54.7% have a Bachelor’s Degree • 19.1% have an Associate Degree • 10.6% have a Master’s Degree • 8.0% have a High School Diploma • 1.6% have a Doctorate Degree • Most prominent employees’ majors : • 24.9% have a major in Mechanical Engineering • 15% have a major in Business • 10.6% have a major in Aerospace Engineering • 8.1% have a major in Electrical Engineering • 5.3% have a major in Aviation • 3.9% have a major in Precision Metal Working OLLI Fall 2023 22
    • 23. Payoff OLLI Fall 2023 23 Bing Videos
    • 24. Next Session SpaceX and NASA commercial funding OLLI Fall 2023 24


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