SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS (TO SYSTEMS ENGINEERING COMMUNITY)

Specific Recommendations (to Systems Engineering Community)

Roadmaps for Progress

The changes needed that are listed here are derived from the FROM and TO conditions that are described in Chapter 3 within the context of Chapters 1 and 2.

Systems Engineering Contributions to Solving Societal Challenges

Changes Needed

  • Systems Engineering Contributions to Solving Societal Challenges

  • Foundational Systems Engineering competencies are integrated into college and pre-college curricula.

  • Digital engineering methods and tools enable integrated analysis of both technical and non-technical elements.

  • Systems engineering application is promoted for a broad set of domains and non-technical/socio-techni­cal needs.

  • Systems engineering serves as an integrator for many engineering and global challenges (such as, sustainability).

  • Systems engineering is included on agendas for industry and gov­ernment leadership. 

Demonstrate the Value of Systems Engineering 

Changes Needed

  • Systems Engineering Core Competencies are part of individual, team, and enterprise learning.

  • Digital Engineering transformation inte­grates systems engineering practices and systems thinking across all disciplines.

  • Systems engineering is effective across domains, life cycle models, delivery approaches, and solution portfolios.

  • Strong systems engineering Communities of Practice form within application domains.

  • Systems engineering demonstrates utility for solutions of any complexity [and integrates both horizontally and vertically].

Addressing Dynamic Change and Uncertainty

Changes Needed

  • Data standards are developed and adopted enabling effective data interconnection and exchange.

  • Methods and tools for dealing with product variation and variability are widely adopted.

  • Knowledge Management and incremental learning are integrated with systems engineering practices.

  • Systems engineering incorporates dynamic feedback into solutions across the life cycle (such as Agile practices).

  • Increasing technology assistance for human tasking is incorporated including automated workflows. 

MBSE– Digital Transformation

Changes Needed

  • Use and management of models, architecture, and digital thread mature, including digital twins.

  • Immersive visualization with modeling and simulation is incorporated.

  • Trusted digital environments with broad span are established.

  • Trusted data is managed as an essential asset.

  • Effective semantic integration of digital assets is applied, including knowledge representa­tion.

  • MBSE is supported by AI/ML to aid development of solutions.

Analytic Framework for Enhanced System Understanding

Changes Needed

  • Advanced data science, AI/ ML, augmentation, and visualization are integrated to support analyses for improved understanding of system behavior.

  • Standards and regulations are integrated in the framework.

  • Capability to analyze a broader set of elements across the life cycle (such as, sustainability and social acceptability) is developed.

  • Effective synthesis capabilities are matured, including for systems of systems.

  • Knowledge is increased of natural systems and how they embody and deal with complexity. 

Systems Engineering Adoption of Reuse Practices 

Changes Needed

  • Commonality of practice across a range of systems engineering use cases is understood and applied.

  • Patterns and unified models that account for variations are established.

  • Effective reuse practices evolve and become widely applied across domains (Product Line Engineering and Composable Design).

Systems Engineering Tools for Digital Environment 

Changes Needed

  • Focus shifts to data/ information rather than tools.

  • Consistent artifacts for com­munication are established.

  • Modeling language and data interchange standards are developed and used that facilitate information shar­ing.

  • Effective distributed information sharing/interchange is common.

  • Speed and capacity for analyz­ing alternatives and impacts increases (orders of magnitude). 

Foundations and Research 

Changes Needed

  • New principles, phenomena, concepts, heuristics, and technologies are integrated with existing knowledge.

  • Research to define and validate the systems engineering Theoretical Foundations is launched.

  • Research on systems engineering practices, tools, and applications that address dynamic change and uncertainty is facilitated.

  • Industry, government, and associations team with academia to further systems engineering research and incorporate systems engineering foundations into the curriculum.

  • Systems engineering research encourages cross-disciplinary engagement to move towards integrated approaches. 

Advancement of Education 

Changes Needed

  • Enhance workforce via lifelong edu­cation/training.

  • Engineering continuing educa­tion and pre-college education integrates select systems engineering concepts and systems thinking into their curricula.

  • Systems Engineering community and accreditation bodies team to add systems engineering and system concepts into all engineering accreditation criteria.

  • Non-technical requirements are added to the curricula, such as human dynamics and sustainability.

  • Challenge-based, hands-on education, and training of integrated methods and approaches evolves.