Systems Engineering Principles and Practice, 2nd Edition

4THE SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

4.1 SYSTEMS ENGINEERING THROUGH THE SYSTEM LIFE CYCLE

As was described in Chapter 1, modern engineered systems come into being in response to societal needs or because of new opportunities offered by advancing technology, or both. The evolution of a particular new system from the time when a need for it is recognized and a feasible technical approach is identified, through its development and introduction into operational use, is a complex effort, which will be referred to as the system development process. This chapter is devoted to describing the basic system development process and how systems engineering is applied at each step of this process.

A typical major system development exhibits the following characteristics:

• It is a complex effort.
• It meets an important user need.
• It usually requires several years to complete.
• It is made up of many interrelated tasks.
• It involves several different disciplines.
• It is usually performed by several organizations.
• It has a specific schedule and budget.

The development and introduction into the use of a complex system inherently requires increasingly large commitments of resources as it progresses from concept through engineering, production, and operational use. Further, the introduction of new technology inevitably involves risks, which must be identified and resolved as early as possible. These factors require that the system development be conducted in a step-by-step manner, in which the success ...