1-System Life Cycle

Question 1

Generic systems life cycle

Answer 1

1-Conceptualization (pre-acquisition): business needs
2-Realization (includes acquisition)
3-Utilization and evolution
4-Disposal or Retirement

Question 2

Conceptualization or pre-acquisition phase

Answer 2

1-Business needs are confirmed by business case that justify expenditure
2-Research to determinate feasibility, options cost effective projects to move forward to acquisition

Question 3

Acquisition phase

Answer 3

Defining the systems in terms of three major artifacts: a) business requirements, b)stake holder requirements and c)system requirements

Question 4

Utilization phase

Answer 4

Operation and modifications (adapt changes, improvements of performance, rectify performance shortfalls)

Question 5

Retirements phase

Answer 5

Or it’s not further required or no meet functions required now or is not longer cost-effective to keep it in service.

Question 6

Parties involved

Answer 6

Customer, enterprise management, business managers, stakeholders, users, acquirer, contractor, developer

Question 7

Responsibility of the parties involved

Answer 7

1-pre-acquisition: enterprise management, more business managers
A project is created, responsibility of project manager
System Engineering: discipline responsible to perform the technical management of the project throughout acquisition and utilization and retirement.
2-acquisition: PM + SE
3-utilization support and users

Question 8

System Engineering main focus

Answer 8

It’s on acquisition and utilization phase.

Question 9

Main activities in acquisition and utilization phase

Answer 9

Derived on military standards and early work of Blanchard and Fabrycky:
Acquisition
1-conceptual design 
2-preliminary design
3-Detailed design and development
4-Construction or Production

Utilization
5-operational use
6-system support

Question 10

Conceptual Design

Answer 10

Formal transition from business world to project world.
From mission to logical description of system of interest. Three broad steps:
1-Business Needs and Requirements (BNR). Made with business managers.
2-Stackeholders Needs & Requirements (SNR) stakeholders at the business operation level
3-System Requirement Specification (SyRS), system requirements for entire capability system, usually one SyRS for each capability.
** SyRS is key element of the Functional Baseline (FBL). The FBL represents a system-level logical architecture that describes the whats and whys of the system that meets the business and stakeholder needs and requirements.
This phase ends with System Design Review (SDR).

Question 11

SDR

Answer 11

System Design Review ends conceptual design and provides formalized check of logical design, comunicate it to stakehlders, confirms BNR, SNR and SyRS, formal record design decisions and design acceptance.

Question 12

Preliminary design

Answer 12

Converts FBL into an upper-level physical definition of the system configuration or achitecture (hows).
-Shift from problem domain to solution domain.
-Logical design into physical design.
-Produces Allocated Baseline (ABL) that is a subsystem-level design.
-FBL logical grouping are defined in more detail and re-grouped and allocated to subsystem-level physical groupings (configuration items-CI)
-ABL contains DEVELOPMENT SPECIFICATIONS wich contain the subsystem-level requirements grouped by CI.
ABL is formalized at the Preliminary Design Review (PDR).

Question 13

Preliminary Design Review - PDR

Answer 13

Ends the preliminary design and formalized the Allocation Baseline (ABL) ensuring the adequacy of the preliminary design effort.
PDR assess technical adequacy of the proposed solution in therms of technical risk and satisfaction of the FBL. Also check CI interfaces and compatibility of each of the CIs.

Question 14

Detailed Design and Development

Answer 14

Allocated Baseline-ABL is used in the Detailed Design to complete development of the individual subsystems, assemblies and components. Prototyping may occur and the system design is confirmed by test and evaluation.
Result is the initial establishment of the Product Baseline (PBL).
PBL contains subsystems, assemblies and components as well as the requisite materials and processes for manufacturing and construction.
PBL should be suficiently detailed to support the start of the CONSTRUCTION or PRODUCTION activities.
Ends with Critical Design Review (CDR)

Question 15

Critical Design Review-CDR

Answer 15

Ends the Detailed Design and Construction phase.
Official acceptance of the design. CDR evaluates the detailde design, readiness for production/construction and ensures design compatibility including understanding of internal and external interfaces.

Question 16

Construction and/or Development

Answer 16

System components are produced in accordance with detailed design specifications in the Product Baseline.
Formal tests and evaluation activities (acceptance tests) will be conducted to ensure that final systems meets requirements in the SyRS.
C/P and the acquisition phase ends with the Formal Qualification Review FQR

Question 17

FQR- Formal Qualification Review

Answer 17

FQR provides the basis UPON WHICH which customer accepts the systems from the contractor.
FQR is informed by the results of acceptance test and evaluation (AT&E)

Question 18

Utilization Phase

Answer 18

After accepted, system move to utilization phase.

Major activities are use and system support.

Question 19

Retirement phase

Answer 19

perhaps overlap introduction of new system

Question 20

Development approaches

Answer 20

Several approaches:

• traditional waterfall
• incremental, spiral or evolutionary