UK Chapter

A clear and rigorous description of an organisation’s business processes is a key prerequisite of many outputs in the Systems Engineering field and related disciplines. Bristol Local Group is delighted to welcome Martyn Ould to discuss the novel Riva method. Unlike many of the alternatives, Riva combines a rigorous notation with a practical analytical method, one that is currently being used in parts of the Defence and Research community to good effect.

With concurrency and collaboration at its heart, Riva is grounded in organisational theory rather than driven by the constraints of software modelling tools. It uses business concepts to describe businesses, rather than distorting the world to fit inappropriate software concepts. That said, it has strong formal underpinnings that ensure rigour and transparency in the resulting descriptions, more so than many other approaches that come from software engineering.

Martyn is the author of Business Process Management – a rigorous approach. During a varied career in Software Development, including teaching at Oxford University and University of West of England, Martyn became increasingly involved in Business Process Management, applying Riva in assignments with major organisations such as GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, and the Electricity Supply Board of Ireland, and with both national and local government. Now pretending to be retired, he was a Fellow of the British Computer Society and a Chartered Engineer.

Practitioners of systems thinking use the viable systems model (VSM), the minimum combination of systems laws to describe the necessary functions and conditions required for any organisation to independently survive and thrive within a changing environment by understanding and reacting to complexity inside and outside the organisation.

Existing viable systems can be diagnosed using VSM to identify  weaknesses predict issues and risks. New systems can be designed using VSM to improve efficiency, effectiveness and the ability to cope with complexity, thereby increasing the chances of surviving in a dynamic environment.

Two systems thinking practitioners, Dr. Niki Jobson (DSTL) and Jonathan
Higginbottom from Southampton City Council will discuss the “why, how and what” to use VSM in your work.

The talk is free and anyone interested in systems thinking and systems engineering is invited to attend

The meeting will take place at the offices of WSP in Manchester, from 10:00 – 16:00. The address is

No 8 First Street Manchester  M15 4RP.

If you would like to attend this meeting, please contact us via email on Michael.Gainford@es.catapult.org.uk

Relaunch event with Professor Alan Smith 6pm – 7.30pm 12 December 2018

We invite you to join us at the relaunching event of the London Local Group with the aim to provide a local meeting point for people interested in Systems Engineering, and stimulate an open dialogue and exchange of perspectives

Featuring a talk by Professor Featuring a talk by Professor Alan Smith, UCL followed by a group discussion on the future of the London Local Group

Venue: 4-8 Endsleigh Gardens Bentham House  221 Hong Kong Room University College London London WC1H 0EG

A large number of route upgrade programmes that include projects covering disciplines such as signalling, the permanent way, stations, overhead electrification, ticketing, traffic management and other capability improvements are planned within control period 6 within the UK railway industry.  These individual improvement programmes shall lead to a step change in capability that require an integrated and united systems engineering process and migration strategy in order to realise their benefits effectively.

Programme management processes align project outputs to benefits so that benefit realisation can be managed, measured and delivered.  The programmatic, technical, time phasing and assurance approach and benefits realisation should be addressed in an effective Migration Strategy.  The Migration Strategy provides the vision and stakeholder agreed guidance to implement and put into service the new integrated capabilities so that objectives are met within the performance, cost, time and risk parameters agreed by stakeholders.

However, implementation of these route programmes is not merely complicated, it is complex with multiple dependencies, interactions and emergent behaviours, requiring expensive and comprehensive testing programmes to mitigate the impact.

This presentation will highlight these areas of concern and provide systems engineering approaches that complement the programmatics so that major risks can be mitigated and benefit realisation maximised.

The System Engineering approaches covered in this presentation are:

1)  Modelling and Simulation;

2)  Architectural analysis; and

3)  Model Based Systems Engineering

The objective is to show how these methods could be implemented in a manner that is consistent with a route’s business and renewals strategy and are easy to communicate to stakeholders.

The speakers are Mike Morua and Karl King.  They are systems engineers and members of INCOSE and are both currently employed at Frazer-Nash Consultancy as Senior Consultants. Both have experience of the development and delivery of large rail projects involving infrastructure, signalling, telecommunications and rolling stock including such complex upgrade projects as ETCS and CBTC systems.  Mike has experience in defence telecommunications and energy infrastructure projects and has worked in the US and Australia.  Karl has worked on major rail projects, specialising in Command Control and Signalling Programmes, including ERTMS, CBTC and Traffic Management for projects such as Crossrail, Thameslink and the Victoria Line Upgrade Programme.  He has also worked on major railway upgrades in the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Germany, USA, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Mozambique, Guinea, Taiwan, India, Kuala Lumpur, Panama, Brazil, UAE and Israel.

The meeting will take place at WSP House, 70 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1AF (meeting rooms 1-05/06). There is no charge for attendance and the event is open to non-members but places must be booked in advance. To book, obtain directions or to ask any other questions, please contact RIG Organiser, Michael Morua on m.morua@fnc.co.uk or 07763 455171.

The International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) is an international professional society for systems engineers whose mission is to foster the definition, understanding, and practice of world-class systems engineering in industry, academia, and government

 The INCOSE UK Rail Interest Group has been formed:

• To provide a forum for those interested in Systems Engineering in rail to network in a less formal environment, to exchange good practice and to provide mutual support in an area which can require some sustained perseverance;

• To promote, improve and share the practice of Systems Engineering within the rail industry;

• To foster connections with other professional bodies within rail and thereby promote cross fertilisation of knowledge and experience across sectors and community disciplines; and

• To promote awareness of INCOSE UK and encourage membership within the rail industry.

For further information about the RIG, see www.incoseonline.org.uk and follow the ‘Groups’ link.

“The Year of Engineering”

A two-day conference bringing together world-class presenters and practitioners and providing an excellent forum for professional networking. This remains the UK’s premier Systems Engineering event and will feature:

• Keynote addresses will be given on each day
• Technical presentations on contemporary Systems Engineering theory and practice
• Tutorials run by leading Systems Engineering practitioners
• Exhibition of Systems Engineering organisations presenting their products and services
• An academic research showcase poster competition
• The conference dinner, with an after-dinner speaker from the world of armoured defence vehicles.

The ECF will be hosting a meeting for all of its members attending ASEC this year. It will provide an opportunity to meet each other and discuss the Forum's priorities and future plans.