From: Robert J. Bradbury (bradbury@aeiveos.com)
Date: Sun Jul 14 2002 - 12:03:05 MDT
On Sun, 14 Jul 2002, Adrian Tymes wrote:
> Spudboy100@aol.com wrote:
>
> > I wonder if there are recent examples that could be cited, regarding
> > Commercial, better, cheaper, faster?
>
> The usual trio that I bring up when anybody asks: [snip]
If you are not talking about space access, then a good example
would be Celera -- a clear example of a privately funded effort
to challenge a publically funded effort (though they have recently
pulled the plug on their former strategy).
There is some controversy about the degree to which they
relied on public data to get their version of the genome.
There is little doubt however that their attempt may have
forced the public efforts into an alternate and better
"industrial" strategy mode.
I've read stuff on the net however that suggests that one
will never get better/cheaper/faster out of the existing
military/commercial industrial complex. There is too
little competition and too much negative self-impact with
developing "cheaper". If one has profits of 20% on a $50M
vehicle and one is expected to have profits of 20% on a
$5M vehicle, then it makes sense to sell $50M vehicles.
It looks to me like the current cost savings, the Air
Force's, "Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle" program
has been extracted from the manufacturers tooth by
bloody tooth. But I don't know that business, so I
could be completely wrong.
Robert
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