Orbital Sciences Corporation

Challenge
For years, product engineers at Orbital Sciences Corporation, a space and information systems company that designs, manufactures, operates and markets affordable space infrastructure systems, had to use printed catalogs, product data sheets, and even call vendors to get correct parts information. The company needed to implement a new electronic components database to help reduce the time required to spec out 500 critical power supply components for new satellites. The system also had to allow engineers to search by part number, manufacturer or description.

Solution
CatalogXpress from IHS, was the answer. CatalogXpress is a comprehensive collection of electronics component information sources that allows users to find the information they need in a single search. The application contains information from over 16,000 of the world's top manufacturers and uses a proprietary 840,000-term technical thesaurus that allows precise searches without exact terms. CatalogXpress which was initially adopted for use by engineers working on the power subsystem of satellites is now used by various other groups throughout Obital.

Value Created
The implementation of CatalogXpress has reduced the time needed to spec out the power supply components for a new satellite from three weeks to one.

Detail