The Systems Engineering process is designed to translate stakeholder needs into actionable and verifiable requirements, and ultimately into a complete and functioning product. This page outlines each step of the process, ensuring you understand how to progress from initial needs to a validated system.
Begin by gathering and analyzing the needs of all stakeholders. This includes identifying the individuals or groups that have an interest in the system and understanding their expectations, goals, and constraints. Stakeholder needs form the foundation of your entire system and drive all subsequent activities.
Translate stakeholder needs into high-level product requirements. Product requirements are often more formal and are used to describe what the system must accomplish without diving into the technical specifics. They should be measurable, unambiguous, and prioritized to align with stakeholder goals.
Develop technical requirements from the product requirements. Technical requirements define how the system will achieve the product requirements in terms of performance, functionality, and constraints. They are more detailed and often specify technical specifications, standards, and protocols that need to be met to ensure the system delivers on its intended purpose.
Once the technical requirements are established, proceed to design the system architecture. This step involves creating functional, physical, and interface design elements that illustrate how the system will be structured and how components will interact. The goal is to ensure all technical requirements can be satisfied by the design.
Verification and Validation (V&V) are critical to ensure the system fulfills both technical and product requirements. Verification checks if the system is built correctly (i.e., conforms to requirements), while validation ensures the right system is built (i.e., fulfills stakeholder needs). Use V&V activities throughout the project to confirm compliance.
Develop detailed test cases based on the requirements. Each test case should clearly define the objective, inputs, expected results, and procedures for testing a specific aspect of the system. Link test cases directly to their respective requirements for traceability.
Execute the test cases in controlled environments to confirm the system meets its requirements. Test runs involve documenting the procedures followed, the actual results observed, and comparing them to the expected outcomes. Log any discrepancies, defects, or anomalies to ensure they are addressed before progressing further.
Based on the outcomes of the verification and validation activities, iterate on the design, requirements, or components to refine the system until all criteria are met. Continuous improvement and adaptation are key aspects of systems engineering to address new insights and evolving needs.