System Engineering is the discipline used to develop the technical
requirements
for developing or improving a complex system from the needs of the potential
customer(s) and/or user(s) of the system under development.
System Engineering principles were developed to meet the complex
development
needs of complicated military systems.
System Engineering assures that the finished product meets the needs of
the
customers and/or users at a reasonable cost by managing the expectations of
the customer as well as managing the engineering development of the system.
The process of systems engineering uses various tools and methods to determine the REAL needs of the customers. The result of this activity is a set of customer requirements that drive the engineering effort.
Customers, who are critical participants of the systems engineering process, are kept informed as to the costs and risks involved in the engineering effort. Customer requirements are mapped to costs and risk so that the customer is made well aware of the implications of his requirements.
The risks associated with the project, whether due to new technologies, scheduling conflicts, or conflicting requirements, are identified and tracked using specialized tools and processes. Cost and schedule impacts are identified and monitored. Failure modes are identified, and engineering or operational solutions identified. By managing risk, the project keeps the customer informed and updated on the status of the project, and costs are realistically identified.
The entire engineering effort is managed from the top on down. Requirements are developed for the system level from the customer requirements, and the system is divided into manageable subsystems that have their own set of requirements. Functional Analysis is used to determine the required functionality of the system and its subsystems.
Meanwhile, the requirement effort continues to more specific lower levels until individual components are reached. Requirements are linked from the top down, so that any changes in the operation of the system, or the customer requirements, can quickly lead to the identification of impacts down to the component level.
The system engineering effort ensures that system performance meets the needs of the customer through the requirement process. Customer expectations are managed by validating system performance through simulations, models, and test programs. Performance is allocated to lower and lower levels of design so that each engineer knows exactly what is expected from their component part.
The system engineering effort is responsible for ensuring that the system under design meets its requirements. Simulations, testing, and analysis are all used to validate system performance.
We can work with the customer/user of the system or product to develop a set of customer requirements that will be used to define the performance, uses, operation, and purpose of the finished product.
Customer requirements are used to develop the required engineering documentation, from the System Specification, to Product Specifications, Management Plans, Risk Analyses, and Operation Plans & Scenarios. Interface Specifications are used to define "how the individual components fit together". Functional Analysis is used to determine the required functionality of the system.
Through the use of management and engineering plans, interface specifications, the use of integrated schedules, and by linking requirements from top-level specifications to lower level specifications, the engineering effort is coordinated from top to bottom. This ensures that system design meets customer requirements, and that the performance, costs, and schedule of the system development effort are identified and managed.
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Web author: Robert F. Bodi.
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