ROV-E & Training! 🚀
What’s the best way for JPL to prevent knowledge loss—mentorship, documentation, or hands-on training?
"Simple: JPL needs an improved, centralized Lessons Learned Database! Boeing’s engineers repeatedly made the same mistakes because they had scattered, inconsistent documentation. Their knowledge wasn’t easily accessible, leading to catastrophic errors like the 737 MAX software issues. If JPL doesn’t streamline its documentation, we risk repeating history. A well-structured database ensures engineers can quickly access critical insights, preventing costly missteps in future missions!"
Should JPL stick to 'Build to Print' or allow for more innovation?
I see both points, but abandoning past designs too quickly is just as risky. JPL needs a hybrid approach—stick to tested systems where it makes sense, but allow innovation where necessary to avoid falling behind.
Should JPL fund ROV-E now, or should mentorship and documentation take priority?
ROV-E sounds great, but let’s be real—no piece of tech will replace experienced engineers passing down their knowledge. If we don’t implement structured mentorship first, we’re setting up new hires for failure. JPL engineers are retiring, and we need a knowledge-sharing culture before anything else.
Boeing failed to share knowledge across teams. What can JPL learn from this?
Their communication was really poor across teams like Boeing Boss said. If I was a new engineer there, I wouldn’t have known where to look for information other than asking my boss. And my boss wouldn’t know where to look either. Unlike a database like Dr. Knowledge proposes, simply having the teams talking to and encouraging each other could fix all Boeing’s problems. But, this should start from the top down - management ultimately has the bird’s eye view of how to make this company work best.
If JPL could only fund ONE knowledge transfer initiative, what should it be?
"That’s great in theory, but JPL has had databases before—and they didn’t work! Why would more investment suddenly change that? Instead, we need dedicated ‘mentorship days’ every Friday where senior engineers directly transfer knowledge to junior staff by going over old projects with them and fully explaining where issues arose and how they were solved. And JPL should encourage ‘teaching engineers’—experts who specialize in knowledge transfer."