487 Table 3. Cost breakdown for burn wire release mechanisms. 

Part Description Material Secondary  Processing Quantity Total  Cost  Upper Saddle Aluminum 6061 Hard Anodize 10 $849.00 Lower Saddle Aluminum 6061 Hard Anodize 10 $200.00 Dowel Pin 18-8 Stainless  None 20 $430.00 Compression Springs  (CI013DE03M from Lee Spring) 302 Stainless Steel None 100 $101.00 1/8" External Snap Rings (McMaster-Carr) Beryllium Copper None 100 $12.50 #0 Stud Ring Terminals (McMaster-Carr and Stripping Manufacturer) Copper Tin Stripping  100 $45.30 #0 Fasteners (McMaster-Carr) 18-8 Stainless Steel None 100 $5.68 0.0100" Diameter Nichrome Wire Nickel Chromium None 1/8 lb. $18.65                  Total Cost for  10 Mechanisms $1,662.13       Cost per  Mechanism $166.21    Cautions and Areas for Potential Improvement   A drawback to the burn wire release mechanism is that the successful operation of it relies largely on the workmanship and assembly of the mechanism in its intended application. A loss of spring preload is possible if the Vectran tie down cable is not tensioned properly. Additionally, the available play and stiffness of the electrical wiring for the flying leads or and improperly securing the nichrome wire under the screw head can all lead to potential failures of the burn wire release mechanism to successfully cut through the Vectran tie down cable. Therefore it is critical that throughout the assembly and installation of the burn wire release mechanism that careful attention is given to these areas of concern and risk of failure is mitigated. Properly tensioning the Vectran tie down cable, ensuring an appropriate free length of nichrome wire and proper placement of the burn wire release mechanism will help to avoid the threat of the springs losing preload. Conducting pull tests of the nichrome wire and verifying the connection under a stereo microscope after securing it between the ring terminals and the screw head will verify that the nichrome wire connection is reliable and the possibility of the nichrome wire coming unattached can be avoided. When installing the release mechanism it is vital to verify that ample play is given for the electrical wiring of the flying leads to the mechanism and that snag hazards of the wiring are avoided. If the electrical wiring does become snagged or runs out of available room to move, the small force associated with the burn wire release mechanism will likely not be sufficient to compensate for a snag and the release mechanism would fail to cut through the tie down cable.  Improvements could be made to the burn wire release mechanism to lower the reliance on workmanship and add confidence and reliability to the mechanism. To minimize the risk of the flying leads being a snag hazard, one could investigate adding a jumper wire to the mechanism with a connection pad that would have all of the moving wires on contained to the mechanism itself and then the electrical leads could be mounted to the stationary portion of the mechanism. This would mandate a design change to the saddles and add slight complexity to the release mechanism but would help to alleviate the risk of failed release due to the electrical wiring to the mechanism. Another improvement could be a new way to mechanically connect the nichrome wire to the release mechanism instead of using the preload and clamping force of