The NASA Workmanship training credential extension web tool was created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely disrupted operations at NASA training centers. These disruptions made it challenging for personnel to renew their Workmanship training credentials, which typically expire after two years. To mitigate the risks associated with personnel continuing work with expired credentials, NASA initially issued memos extending credential validity. However, as the pandemic's impact persisted, a more sustainable solution was needed, leading to the development of the web tool.

NASA’s Workmanship Standards Program is piloting a new training process with Johnson Space Center’s Receiving and Inspection Test facility that will allow personnel who take the IPC/WHMA-A-620 Space course at NASA training facilities to work as inspectors on NASA flight hardware. This training will provide efficiencies not available when using the training program offered by the IPC, who trains hardware builders and hardware inspectors in the same manner. This training program will be provided only to those who only perform inspections and not to those who will build the hardware.

The Office of Safety and Mission Assurance’s Workmanship Standards program recently updated NASA-STD-8739.6, Implementation Requirements for NASA Workmanship Standards to

• Align with changes in industry standards
• Expand Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) control requirements
• Clarify training requirements
• Reflect changes in other NASA Policy Directives and NASA Procedural Requirements

The NASA Workmanship Standards Program has released a new course in SATERN as a part of the NSC STEP Training that provides an overview of NASA-STD 8739.6, Implementation Requirements for NASA Workmanship Standards. The course, “8739.6 Self-Paced Workmanship Training,” is intended to inform and familiarize NASA employees with the NASA standard without replacing the need to read the content of the standard or participate in traditional Workmanship training.

It is essential that NASA engineers use proper precautions when working with Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) sensitive hardware, as poor ESD control practices could be the difference between success and failure for a mission. ESD control is a fundamental component of NASA’s workmanship policy, which is why NASA requires operators to verify ESD personnel grounding systems (e.g. wrist or heel straps that are continuously connected to common point ground) are properly functioning before they enter an ESD Protected Area (EPA) or come within one meter of an ESD sensitive item. 

Multi-disciplinary physics-of-failure testing and simulations conducted on Printed Circuit Boards at Goddard Space Flight Center recently resulted in an industry standard update, which will lead to cost savings not only for NASA but for the electronics industry in general.

The NASA Workmanship Standards Program coordinated an administrative change to NASA-STD-8739.6A, Implementation Requirements for NASA Workmanship Standards. The primary reason for the change is to formally adopt IPC/WHMA-A-620B-S, Space Applications Electronic Hardware Addendum to IPC/WHMA-A-620B as an equivalent, alternative standard to NASA-STD-8739.4, Workmanship Standard for Crimping, Interconnecting Cables, Harnesses, and Wiring.  

NASA-STD-8739.4A, Crimping, Interconnecting Cables, Harnesses, and Wiring was updated and released on June 30, 2016. The revised standard, effective for five years, includes significant technical updates and corrections. This update was one of three recently publish standard updates, which included NASA-STD-8739.1B, Workmanship Standard for Polymeric Application on Electronic Assemblies and NASA-STD-8739.6A, Implementation Requirements for NASA Workmanship Standards.

NASA-STD-8739.1B, Workmanship Standard for Polymeric Application on Electronic Assemblies was updated and released on June 30, 2016. The revised standard, effective for five years, includes significant technical updates and corrections. This update was one of three recently publish standard updates, which included NASA-STD-8739.4A, Crimping, Interconnecting Cables, Harnesses, and Wiring and NASA-STD-8739.6A, Implementation Requirements for NASA Workmanship Standards.

NASA published an updated version of NASA-STD-8739.5, Workmanship Standard for Fiber Optic Terminations, Cable Assemblies, and Installation, on Sept. 14, 2015. This update adds an exclusion and a new requirement in addition to meeting agency requirements to periodically check and refresh the standard.