Alessandro De Simone, PMP®

Experience

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  University of Naples Federico II

  Oct 2004 - Apr 2005

  Traineeship at Laboratory of Microgravity Fluid Dynamics

  Measurement of surface tension of alcoholic solutions. Visualization and analysis of surface tension driven (Marangoni’s) flows induced by temperature gradients. In particular: liquid films, bubbles and drops of pure liquid and binary mixtures were analyzed. The study of such thermal flows and related transport phenomena was aimed to the development of advanced heat transfer devices.

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  ESA/ESTEC

  Sept 2006 - Feb 2007

  Traineeship at Physical Science Unit, Research and Operations Department (HME/GAP) division

  Scientific requirements definition for Fluid-dynamic experiment in micro-gravity environment: compile requirement of investigators, Experiment Requirement Document (ERD) writing.Preliminary study of suitable diagnostic techniques, performance of trade-off with respect rate of accuracy and applicability to micro-gravity environment.

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  SRON

  Jun 2007 - May 2008

  Traineeship at SRON and Twente University as part of master thesis research

  Design and Realization of a setup for Mechanical tests on a MEMS based Micro Gravity-GradiometerDesign and realization of a test setup suitable for mechanical test in vacuum. The design includes selection and integration of a piezoelectric actuator. Scope is to perform mechanical tests on a miniaturized gravity gradiometer realized from a 10 cm diameter silicon wafer in order to estimate mechanical parameters (spring constant k, and quality factor Q) needed for the characterization of the device.Validation of the test setup: vacuum tests, dynamical behavior, noise characterization. Show less

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  EADS Astrium

  Feb 2009 - Jul 2009

  System Engineer

  Requirements and specifications evaluation for project of EC (Experimental Container) for fluid physics experiment to be performed on the FSL facility on board of the International Space Station (FOAM project). Supporting in Breadboard Design (including test cell and optical diagnostics); Breadboard assembly and testing

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  Bradford Engineering BV

  Dec 2009 - Apr 2012

  System Engineer

  Qualification/Acceptance/Calibration Tests preparation, performance and results evaluation, including relevant documentation (Procedures, Reports, Technical Notes, etc..) of AOCS components, mainly Sun Sensors.

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  Airbus Defence and Space

  May 2012 - Jun 2015

  ISS Payload Integration Manager contractor Vitrociset

  Integration of European Scientific Payloads on the International Space Station

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  Vitrociset Belgium

  Jul 2015 - Nov 2015

  Bidding Team Coordinator

  Coordination of bidding proposals for Vitrociset Belgium in the field of Spacecraft System Engineering, telecommunication and Human Spaceflights

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  European Space Agency - ESA

  Oct 2021 - Dec 2021

  ESA Houston Office representative at the ISS Management Center

  Assignment as EHO (ESA Houston Office) representative tasked to follow the works of the ISSManagement Team at JSC in Houston.The tasks included: participation to the IMMT (ISS Mission Management Team) meetings, and reporting about the ESA’s operations; participation to the ESA/NASA pre-IMMT meetings and ESA/NASA Increment Managers Tagups in support to the ESA Increment Manager; participation to the NASA Ops Tagups, in support to the NASA teams involved in discussions relating ESA activities; Continuous coordination with ESA’s Increment Manager on the status of the ESA’s activities, planning and risks evaluation Show less

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  ESA/ESTEC

  Oct 2022 - now

  Management of the Service in supports of the ESA Directorate of Human and Robotic Exploration (HRE). It includes 5 Technical Work Packages, 9 Sub-Work Packages and 15 Tasks covering Integration, ISS Planning&Utilization, Operations’ Support, Mission Support, Ground Segment, Payload Development, Engineering Support (SE, MBSE, Production) and Crew Training working for LEO (ISS, post-ISS), Moon (Gateway) and Mars (ExPeRT support) Platforms/Destinations. The service also supports Projects in all the Project Phases and has a head count of 36 people.Main tasks:• being responsible for management and administrative aspects of the contract • ensure that the service conforms to management and SOW requirements. • being responsible for the overall mission budget• assess workload peaks and define an implementation plan to be proposed to the customer• compile a Service Quarterly Progress report and support Quarterly Progress Meetings• negotiate changes/improvement to the Service in terms of scope and funding with the customerMain achievement in the position:• Successfully supported the proposal phase by compiling the Technical Proposal and the Management documentation (Implementation Plan, Management Plan, etc.)• Successfully concluded the Phase-in and kicked-off the Operational Phase of the service after completing the Service Operational Readiness (SOR) meeting• Successfully lead the transition phase of the personnel in the new contractual framework Show less Management of the Service composed by 12 members from two different teams: PIMs (Payload Integration Managers) group and the Strategic Requirement Planner and its scope is the integration of ESA sponsored experiments for the ISS and Space Gateway.Main achievements as Service Managers includes:• ensured timely and coherent deliverables toward the ESA TO • fostered the coordination in the service team• ensured continuity in the provision of the service (providing backup capabilities for all the projects managed by the team) Show less

  • Engineering, Integration, Operations and Ground Segment Support Service Manager

    Oct 2024 - now

  • ISS & Gateway Payload Integration Manager contractor Telespazio Belgium

    Dec 2015 - now

  • ISS and Gateway Planning, Analysis and Integration Service Manager

    Oct 2022 - Sept 2024