Space suits served the astronauts well. There were no accidents nor loss of life due to a suit malfunction. Problems arose from the large and active museum loan program for these unique items. The high-tech materials from which they were made were not particularly suited to constant wear and tear. Early methods of exhibiting the suits incorporated either poorly constructed manikins or the use of polyurethane as stuffing material. Polyurethane proved unstable, either dissolving into a powder or shrinking in volume. Finding a solution took combined efforts. The Smithsonian Conservation Analytical Laboratory found a talented textile conservator and expert pattern maker who made the manikin torso. The director of collections maintenance researched what was available on the market for the armature. He and exhibition specialists worked out a method for assembling the pieces in the manikin-support structure.