sPHENIX is a new detector at RHIC.

[David Morrison <dave AT bnl.gov>]

Dear Collaborators,

We received the email below from ALD Berndt Mueller regarding the sPHENIX baseline scope document we submitted to him on June 6.  In addition to acknowledging the hard work that went into developing options, he reaffirms the expectation that we would use "savings from reduced contingency or other developments to restore scope beyond the baseline configuration to the detector”.  We’ve been told to anticipate feedback on the specific content of the baseline scope document, though the timeline for that does not seem firmly set.

Regards,

Dave and Gunther

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Mueller, Berndt" <bmueller AT bnl.gov>

Subject: sPHENIX baseline scope report

Date: August 12, 2016 at 6:15:29 AM EDT

To: Gunther M Roland <rolandg AT MIT.EDU>, "Morrison, David" <morrison AT bnl.gov>

Cc: "Dunlop, James C" <dunlop AT bnl.gov>, "O'Brien, Edward" <eobrien AT bnl.gov>, "Lissauer, David" <lissauer AT bnl.gov>

Dear Gunther and Dave:

I am writing to express my gratitude for the significant effort made by the sPHENIX collaboration to explore the viability of various
options for the scope of the baseline version of the sPHENIX detector. The results of this exercise, described in the document
Addressing the Baseline Scope Charge, have been tremendously useful to the sPHENIX Project Team in its efforts to reconcile the cost of the project with the anticipated financial resources available for the construction effort. In particular, the options outlined in the above document have allowed us to confirm that the sPHENIX project can proceed within the envelope of presently projected future RHIC funding as per guidance from the DOE Office of Nuclear Physics.  As the project moves forward, we expect to use the savings from reduced contingency or other developments to restore scope beyond the baseline configuration to the detector.

The plans for a formal accounting for the project have evolved to a structure including an MIE in the range of $30-35M comprising the core cost of detector hardware and project management, augmented by infrastructure expenses associated with the installation of the new hardware in the PHENIX Hall and labor provided by BNL staff supported by RHIC operations funds. This structure is in line with the original sPHENIX MIE proposal submitted to BNL management in 2013.  The extensive R&D and schedule planning work
performed during the intervening time has given us a much better understanding of the solidity of the cost estimate and the scope and cost of auxiliary activities required by the project. The upcoming tracking review will allow us to better assess whether a MAPS detector can be accommodated within the baseline.

Our ability to converge on a firm baseline scope and cost for sPHENIX is still impaired by the lack of firm estimates of the cost of the
various tracking detector options under considerations. In order to make progress in this direction, we have scheduled a technical and cost review of the proposed silicon and TPC based tracker components on September 7–8, 2016. We hope to gain sufficient insight at this review to proceed with a full baseline cost and schedule review in the November/December time frame. The goal of this review will be to provide BNL management with a sufficiently firm cost and schedule estimate to convince DOE that sPHENIX construction project can be successfully completed within the anticipated funding profile in time for the 2022 RHIC run. The timing of this review is also driven by the expectation that the DOE-NP budget outlook for FY2017 and FY2018 will be clarified, hopefully allowing for an official project start in early 2017.

Best regards 

Berndt

David Morrison Brookhaven National Laboratory phone: 631-344-5840

Physics Department, Bldg 510 C email: dave AT bnl.gov

Upton, NY 11973-5000

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