The Economics of Human Systems Integration: Valuation of Investments in Peoples Training and Education, Safety and Health, and Work Productivity

Chapter 8

Parametric Cost Estimation for Human Systems Integration

Ricardo Valerdi And Kevin Liu

8.1 Introduction

Humans are critical to the success at every stage of the life cycle of complex systems. The International Council of Systems Engineering (INCOSE) defines human systems integration (HSI) as the interdisciplinary technical and management processes for integrating human considerations within and across all system elements; it is an essential enabler to systems engineering practice (INCOSE, 2007). In the defense industry, HSI is a comprehensive management and technical approach for addressing the human element in weapon system development and acquisition (U.S. Air Force, 2008a). By taking into account the interests of designers, operators, maintainers, and other human stakeholders, HSI can improve system performance and minimize ownership costs. Published case studies and best practices have highlighted the technical and economic benefits of successful HSI, particularly when HSI is incorporated with other systems engineering activities early in the acquisition process (Booher, 1997; Landsburg et al., 2008).

When considering the economics of human systems integration, it is useful to think about it in terms of three levels of costs:

1. The cost of doing HSI within systems engineering

2. The cost of satisfying HSI requirements and performing HSI support activities

3. The total ownership cost (and savings) impact of HSI investment

This chapter focuses on the first level ...