Verification, Validation, and Testing of Engineered Systems

1.4 METHODOLOGY APPLICATION

1.4.1 Introduction

In this section we begin to get to the heart of the subject matter in this book. VVT has developed over the years into a set of tools that are tried and proven to save time and money and ensure success in the design and building of complex systems. Having covered the preliminaries in the previous sections, we concentrate here on the tools and techniques available for system VVT. We begin with an overview of the VVT methodology. The basis of this methodology is a process model that assists VVT planning by providing calculation of the cost and risk associated with the various VVT strategies. This process is a guide to modern VVT planning as performed by VVT practitioners, in coordination with the other stakeholders of the engineered system. As mentioned, a good VVT process does not “just happen.” It is the product of thorough planning and strategy.

Since there is no such thing as a “typical” engineered system, what is good for one system in the way of VVT may not be good for another. So, we go on to show how VVT can be tailored to different kinds of systems, different organizations and different project parameters. Heuristics are described for tailoring VVT concepts to specific engineered systems based on project size/complexity and type (i.e., system or industry). Specific attention is paid to the electronics/avionics, aerospace, automotive, food packaging and steel production industries as representative of many other industries. ...