Systems Engineering is an interdisciplinary field in which business needs are translated into complex systems, which may include people, processes, equipment, software. It considers the whole system life-cycle, from definition and design, to implementation, maintenance, and even decommissioning. It takes into account costs, reliability, maintainability, and the metrics and measurements needed to monitor performance over time.
The practice of Systems Engineering is a key focus area at Basalogic. We can help you to engineer and implement successful systems, using a data-driven, methodical approach.
Logistics Applications
With an extensive background in logistics and automated material handling, Basalogic is well suited to apply systems engineering principles to those applications. Typical efforts include the design of systems, encompassing people, processes, equipment, and software, in areas such as:
- Raw materials buffering to feed manufacturing processes
- Manufacturing support systems to handle WIP goods as they flow through a manufacturing process
- Finished goods inventory buffers in manufacturing facilities
- Distribution operations, including inventory buffering, order picking, cross-docking, shipping, receiving, and reverse logistics
- B2B, e-commerce, and retail dustribution
Typical efforts begin with creating a clear statement of purpose, articulating the business needs against which a proposed system could deliver measurable value. This could include improvements to existing operations, in areas such as cost efficiency, safety, damage reduction, and inventory traceability. It may also include new initiatives, such as unmet customer demand, new regulatory requirements, expanding markets, or new business areas.
With the needs understood, a data analysis phase typically follows, in which data is extracted from the current operations and analyzed to create a model of the overall material and information flow throughout the system. Transformations are then applied to this model to account for any proposed changes, such as growth, changes in customer order patterns, changes in products, and new business initiatives. Functional and performance requirements are defined at this point.
Next, material and information flow diagrams are prepared to show possible concepts that would solve the requirements. Finally, equipment and physical layouts are designed to match the requirements defined in the flow diagrams.
The performance of all system options is characterized against the business requirements, allowing the client to make a fact-based decision on how to proceed.
General Applications
This same methodology can be applied to any problem that would benefit from systems thinking. That could include product development, software development, networking, or any number of other things. The generalized form of the systems engineering process has been well defined by a trade group called INCOSE (https://www.incose.org). They lay out a 7-step process with the acronym SIMILAR:
- State the problem
- Investigate alternatives
- Model the system
- Integrate
- Launch the system
- Assess performance
- Re-evaluate
In this process, you move forward from step to step, but from any point, you can jump to step 7 if something arises that changes the needs or assumptions upon which the work to date was built. From there, you can re-enter the process at any step up to and including the point at which you left off.
In logistics projects, Basalogic is best suited to help in steps 1, 2, 3, 6, and 7. We have partners who are can provide steps 4 and 5, which often involve significant capital projects with large design, installation, and commissioning teams.
In electronics, software, and other smaller projects, Basalogic can participate in the entire process.
More Details on SIMILAR
State the problem: This is the step in which business needs are articulated, functional and performance requirements are defined, constraints are identified, value opportunities are characterized, and all of this is assembled into a problem statement that the proposed system will address.
Investigate alternatives: In this step, possible system components, flows, arrangements, and solutions are brainstormed at a high level, and candidate solutions are proposed.
Model the system: This is where candidate solutions are tested against the operation, through simulation, emulation, data modeling, prototyping, or any other means that can predict success.
Integrate: In this step, the detailed design work is completed and the system is built.
Launch the system: This is where the system goes live, and begins to provide value to the business.
Assess performance: This is an ongoing step that is used to monitor an in-service system. It aims to identify opportunities for improvement, changes in the business needs or operating pattern, and areas of degraded performance.
Re-evaluate: When any of the underlying assumptions change during the process, or opportunities are detected in the “assess performance” step, you enter this step. Here, you re-evaluate where you are in the systems engineering process, and re-enter it at any earlier step.