S&K Global Solutions was recently awarded two (2) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 contracts by NASA.  The company is one of five Montana businesses to receive awards.

The NASA SBIR program funds research, development, and innovative technologies that fulfill NASA needs, and to a broader extent, non-NASA commercial opportunities.  To be eligible, the small business must have 500 or fewer employees or be a non-profit research institution with ties to a small business.

Under the first SBIR, S&K Global Solutions will design a software tool called the Autonomy Requirements Tester which will assist engineers at NASA in managing and communicating autonomy requirements for flight and robotic systems.  The application will assist with the development of robots (especially those interacting with humans) and the development of autonomous spacecraft systems for both unmanned spacecraft and those supporting small crews. (Read more about this project)

For the second SBIR, S&K Global Solutions will design a Fault Management (FM) Viewer software tool which will provide new ways of visualizing FM concepts and data.  As pressures increase for spacecraft autonomy, they will also increase for additional FM.  This type of software offers the ability to include better FM while spending development and testing resources more cost efficiently.  Potential customers include future robot systems like Valkyrie and Robonaut 2, rovers like Lunar Prospector, and autonomous spacecraft like the Solar Probe Plus. (Read more about this project)

“S&K is proud to continue supporting the development of advanced software for autonomous spacecraft and for robots that interact with both people and spacecraft,” said Mike Monahan, VP of Business Development.  “And the best part is, we have partnered with Salish Kootenai College (SKC), with corresponding curricula and faculty expertise, for autonomous software research and development.”

S&K Global Solutions is based in Polson, Montana, and has been providing support services at NASA since 1997 for Intelligent Robotic Control Systems and Engineering Integration.  The company is owned by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and is part of the S&K Technologies, Inc. family of companies.  Along with meeting challenges at NASA, they have multiple logistics and information technology contracts with the Department of Defense, Centers for Disease Control, Federal Aviation Administration, and more.

Visit their website to learn more:  http://www.skglobalsolutions.com

For further media inquiries: Contact Us

Artists rendition of the Solar Probe Plus which is designed to fly into the sun’s atmosphere.  A software product being developed by S&K Global Solutions, may provide fault management data for systems like the Solar Probe Plus.