Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.

OCR for page 21
The Decision Model 21 Step 5--Select Applicable Systems Engineering START Process(es) and Procurement Package(s) Use outsourc- ing At the completion of Step 5, you will have identified at least one systems engineering process process (procure- and contracting package appropriate for your systems development project. In all likelihood, this ment package step will result in a number of candidate process and package alternatives. Subsequent steps will 6 or 7) help you decide between them. STEP 1 INITIAL DECISIONS Before executing this step, let's review the alternative systems engineering processes that could Use Other be applied to your situation. The alternative processes (also known as models) are the waterfall consulting services process being model, the evolutionary model, and the spiral model, all of which are explained in detail in (procure- procured. ment Not NCHRP Web-Only Document 85. package covered 5) The waterfall model is representative of typical highway design and construction processes in by this Model. which steps of planning, design, and implementation are performed sequentially. This model is STEP 2 Yes used for less complex ITS projects and can be applied under all agency capability levels. WORK DISTRIBUTION The evolutionary model defines a repetitive sequence of phased planning, requirements, Send individual design, and implementation stages resulting in the deployment of phased versions of a system projects through such that each version is closer to the ultimate system vision. It is applicable to all but the sim- the Decision plest ITS projects or projects that require the development of new, unproven technologies. It Model. should be used by all agency levels for most systems development projects. The idea behind this No model is to divide complex systems development into relatively simple implementation stages that will ultimately result in the successful deployment of the complete system by the end of the STEP 4 STEP 3 final phase. However, remember that an ITS project will never truly end as the deployed system DEFINE PROJECT CATEGORY(IES) DETERMINE AGENCY will always require ongoing operations and maintenance support. CAPABILITY LEVEL The spiral model is appropriate for the development of new applications involving previously STEP 5 untested capabilities that require a lot of planning, prototyping, and evaluation. This model is SELECT APPLICABLE SYSTEMS rarely used by the ITS community, because its application is expensive and time consuming. It is ENGINEERING PROCESS(ES) & most commonly used by the Department of Defense and NASA for the development of new CANDIDATE PROCUREMENT weapons systems or space platforms. It has been used within the ITS community for such PACKAGE(S) advanced developments as the automated highway system and some of the new in-vehicle safety systems. To use the spiral model, a Level 3 agency with an experienced, full-time ITS manager STEP 6 APPLY and staff is recommended. The spiral methodology involves multiple cycles of prototyping and DIFFERENTIATORS Schedule feedback requiring significant agency staff time. A Level 2 agency with significant consultant Constraints resource support (assuming this can be obtained) could oversee this development model but at STEP 7 PACKAGE greater risk for failure. A Level 1 agency would not have the experience, structure, or resources ASSESSMENT AND FINAL to appropriately manage and be involved in this development process. SELECTIONS STEP 8 DEFINE CONTRACT SCOPE AND TERMS & CONDITIONS END This step is based on work associated with Task 4 of NCHRP Project 3-77, which supported development of this guide. Please refer to NCHRP Web-Only Document 85 for additional detailed information on the systems engineering process models.

OCR for page 21
22 Guide to Contracting ITS Projects Now that you've completed our review of systems development processes and their relationship to project categories and agency levels, let's actually execute Step 5. Use the columns (agency capabil- ity) and rows (project category) of the matrix in Table 4 to locate the cell that identifies the applica- ble procurement package or packages. The commodity entries in this table indicate that a simple system based entirely on a COTS product should be acquired using the commodity procurement package. When COTS products are part of a larger system, other procurement packages may be used (i.e., the product may be part of a proposal for low-bid, systems manager, or design-build procurements). A design-build contractor or a systems manager may decide to acquire a COTS product during the system imple- mentation. If this is the case, the product may be acquired by the contractor or in some cases, the agency will procure the COTS product for the contractor using a commodity procurement. Many of the cells in the matrix provide multiple procurement packages and systems engi- neering models. Step 6 will provide you with information that can be used to decide between multiple solutions. If a cell indicates that the project is not recommended, the agency should either seek more experienced staff support or redefine and simplify the project. Remember, as with the previous step, no amount of optimism can be used to overcome fundamental shortcomings in experience or resources! Table 4. The decision matrix for Step 5. Agency Capability Level Project Category Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 1 ­ Straightforward · Waterfall · Waterfall · Waterfall · SM* · Low bid*, commodity, · Low bid, commodity, or or systems manager systems manager 2 ­ Moderately Complex · Evolutionary · Waterfall or · Waterfall or · Systems manager or evolutionary evolutionary design-build* · Low bid*, systems · Low bid, systems manager, or design- manager, or design- build build 3 ­ Complex Not recommended · Evolutionary · Evolutionary or spiral · Systems manager or · Systems manager or design-build design-build 4 ­ Extremely Complex Not recommended · Evolutionary or spiral · Evolutionary or spiral · Systems manager or · Systems manager or design-build design-build Notes: First line is the systems engineering model; second line is the procurement package. * Consulting services should be used while project is under way.