What a smallsat operator needs before Preliminary Design Review

Preliminary Design Review only goes smoothly when the inputs walking in the door are already solid. Review boards don't stall on ambition — they stall on gaps: an orbit that isn't pinned down, a mass budget with no margin, an interface that's still "TBD." Here is what to have ready before you book the review.

A pinned-down mission concept

Payload mass, target orbit, injection accuracy, schedule, mission risk class, and regulatory path — written down as a single architecture option, not a spread of possibilities. A board can review one option; it can't review an open question.

A defensible delta-v and staging budget

Orbit energy, gravity loss, drag loss, steering loss, reserves, and disposal requirements, rolled into a mass fraction and stage count that actually closes. If the numbers only work under best-case assumptions, that's a finding waiting to happen.

A payload interface draft

Separation logic, cleanliness requirements, mechanical and electrical interface points, and mission assurance level. Payload integration decisions made late are the most common source of schedule slip after PDR, so drafting the interface early is cheap insurance.

A risk register with a cost envelope

Every open risk should have an owner, a mitigation path, and a rough cost or schedule impact attached — not just a list of concerns. Boards move faster when risk is quantified instead of narrated.

Get PDR-ready faster

AeroVectrix's Rocket Design Study — Starter Package builds exactly this package (mission concept brief, staging and mass budget, propulsion trade study, payload interface draft, and risk register) in 10 business days, fixed price. It's built to hand straight to your review board.

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