What is the Wallops approach toward new business?

Wallops is extremely interested in growing its business base, both internal to NASA and externally. Wallops is a national resource and is charted to support goals of both federal agencies and commercial industry. A larger base also helps keep the cost of everyone's projects low.

What are Wallops's responsibilities when approaching external business?

In general, Wallops assumes two major responsibilities: 1) to satisfy the customer's requirements in a highly competent, reliable, cost effective manner and 2) to ensure all activities are conducted safely. Wallops does not impose requirements on a customer to ensure mission success for non-Wallops managed programs.

How does Wallops charge for services?

Wallops, as a government organization, can only charge customers for expenses incurred in support of a project. It cannot make profit. Expenses generally include labor, materials, equipment maintenance, administrative costs, and under some circumstances, depreciation.

What about meetings and reviews?

You are highly encouraged to include Wallops in project meetings as early as possible. This helps familiarize our personnel and minimize the possibility that a safety or Wallops support issue will cause delays or additional costs. Wallops conducts formal reviews for most projects to assure support and safety requirements have been met. We ask our customers to participate and approve our support plans and readiness.

What additional documentation is required?

Wallops prefers to minimize the documentation necessary for support as much as possible. The customer is required to provide information necessary to understand the project and to assess the support requirements. Documentation is also required to evaluate compliance with safety design and operational criteria. Additional information may be necessary to evaluate environmental concerns, radio frequency spectrum, and other key issues. Wallops will work with the customer to ensure these needs can be addressed efficiently.

What are Space Act Agreements?

Space Act Agreements are agreements entered under the authority in the Space Act. These Agreements constitute commitments by the Agency of resources (including personnel, funding, services, equipment, expertise, information, or facilities) to accomplish stated objectives of a joint undertaking with an Agreement Partner. The Agreement Partner can be a U.S. or foreign person or entity, an educational institution, a Federal, State, or local governmental unit, a foreign government, or an international organization.

What type of Space Act Agreement do I need?

NASA undertakes Reimbursable Agreements when it has unique goods, services, and facilities not being fully used to accomplish mission needs, which it can make available to others on a noninterference basis, consistent with the Agency's missions. In a reimbursable agreement, the Agreement Partner provides either all, or a portion of, the full cost of the activity. Payment is determined based on the value to NASA of the activity being performed.

Non-reimbursable Agreements involve NASA and one or more Agreement Partners in a mutually beneficial activity that furthers the Agency's missions, wherein each party bears the cost of its participation and there is no exchange of funds between the parties.

How do I get started?

If you have an interest in using NASA/Wallops facilities for your program or project, please send an email to Kathy.A.Donoghue@nasa.gov. Include your name, organization, address, email address, telephone number, and a brief description of your request, and we will respond promptly.