This research effort developed a modification to the HAZMAT program so that the program could provide the user with the capability to generate an estimate during the concept exploration and design phases for the total costs associated with hazardous materials usage in a major weapon system. Using the HAZMAT database, a spreadsheet was developed which projects a cost for a weapon system based on its total surface area and the number of aircraft to be produced by performing an analogy with a similar weapon system. The modification uses algorithm which are based on the hazardous material substances rather than processes which use hazardous materials. This enables the user to eliminate various substances entirely from the weapon system rather than trying to identity every process which uses a particular substance. The modification was identified to be the most efficient method of calculating an estimate during the early phases of the life cycle through in depth interviews and analysis of existing literature on the subject. The authors feel that the methods discovered in this thesis will provide insight for future revisions of HAZMAT and new attempts to formulate a life cycle cost model for hazardous materials
