Systems engineering

I am a Systems Engineer, and I’m proud of it!

I’m proud of it because I believe that if you don’t know what a system is and you don’t know how to do systems engineering, then you have a large opportunity to improve. If you do know something about those things, then your world is a better place, you are enjoying it more, and you are better able to make a positive difference because you understand the significance of everything you do and of everything that needs to be done.

A System is a set of elements that has three essential characteristics:

1. Each element affects the performance of the System,

2. The way in which each element affects the System is dependent on at least one other element, and

3. Any combination of elements retains the above properties.

The human body is the easiest System to think about as an illustration. The way in which the muscular subsystem affects the body’s performance is dependent upon the circulatory subsystem, the nervous subsystem, etc.

Systems Engineering is a formal process for creating a system, e.g. an air or ground vehicle, that is driven by a set of requirements derived from the intended mission of the system throughout its life cycle. A key role of systems engineering is to define the requirements that drive the design of the product and manufacturing system. Without requirements up front, all design processes become arbitrary and possible to manipulate.

Systems engineering is fundamental to the design of the complex systems being produced by all mobility industries today. If you can’t do systems engineering, you can’t be certain you’re capturing the voice of the customer and designing to meet customers’ expectations.

That’s my perspective. What do you think? Contact me at schilke@sae.org.