I recently participated in an interesting debate where 'lasting value, durability and utility' was being pitted against 'mass manufacture, limited value, use and throw'. The examples of consumer products on which the debate raged ranged from cell phones, shoes, umbrellas, wristwatches, sunglasses to white line products. I was tempted to bring in the example of our imaging satellites but social niceties had to be followed.

The story of our 'rugged and lasting value' imaging satellites starting from the LandSat series is more a mystery than science... Designed for a life of just three years, these eyes in the sky have at times lasted eight to ten times their scheduled life. The impact this has probably had on the manufacturers would be similar to that on manufacturers of 'durable, long lasting' consumer goods...why order a new one when the old is doing fine!!! Since the scale of operations is vastly different, the manufacturers of satellites have survived. So what is a company like Boeing to do? ...manufacture satellites with just about the life as expected by the client? The very QC processes that any satellite goes through before it is launched, ensures such a lifespan.