IRVING, TX - NASA has awarded a competitive Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to Targeted Convergence Corporation (TCC), an Irving-based engineering software company, to study new approaches for tackling some of the agency’s toughest design and modeling challenges. The award marks another milestone for TCC’s Success Assured software, which has drawn increasing interest for helping mission and product teams speed up early-stage engineering decisions.
NASA outlined a number of “cross-cutting modeling challenges” it wants to address as it prepares for future missions. Those challenges include the need for wider modeling scope such as cost and schedule, better scalability, options for varying levels of fidelity, improved methods for exploring large design trade spaces, and stronger processes for linking all of these elements together. The agency noted that a long-standing gap exists between the creative early stages of mission design and the highly detailed later phases, where teams often change tools, methods, and even personnel. That handoff can create friction and slow development.
Under the Phase I contract, TCC will demonstrate how its technology can reduce that friction by improving the early mission design process, where decisions tend to have lasting consequences. The company’s set-based concurrent engineering approach, enabled through the Success Assured platform, is intended to give teams clearer insight earlier and shorten the cycle between exploration and validation.
The Phase I effort is expected to run through March 27, 2026. If results meet NASA’s goals, the agency may move forward with a Phase II award to broaden the work across additional mission programs.
“Our technology is designed specifically for the kind of complex engineering work NASA highlighted,” said Brian Kennedy, TCC’s Chief Technical Officer and the project’s Principal Investigator. “Traditional tools often push teams into decisions too early. When those decisions don’t hold up later, the rework slows everything down. Success Assured helps engineers explore more options up front, collaborate better, and reach validated choices much faster. We’re excited to show NASA what this approach can deliver.”
Kennedy added that the problem extends well beyond space exploration, noting that similar challenges appear in aerospace, automotive, energy, medical devices, and advanced manufacturing. He said the work with NASA could influence engineering practices across multiple industries.
About Success Assured® software:
Success Assured enables engineering teams to explore broader design spaces, reduce guesswork in early decision making, and cut development time by identifying feasible solutions earlier in the process. Teams using Success Assured have reported productivity improvements of up to four times and significant reductions in time to market.
About Targeted Convergence Corporation:
TCC, located at 320 Decker Dr #254-03 in Irving, TX, is a global leader in set based concurrent engineering tools and processes. The company provides training, guidance, and advanced software to help engineering organizations move from ideation to validated design decisions with greater speed and confidence. For more information visit www.TargetedConvergence.com.
