Overview
The Rail industry has shifted towards a Systems Engineering oriented approach for major projects. For an industry historically adopting a Design and Construct approach, it has supported successful outcomes for complex projects but has also come with challenges that the industry needs to overcome to achieve greater benefits from Systems Engineering.
Context
Over the past century, the evolution of the environment in and around major cities as well as in rural areas has introduced new levels of complexity for the design and delivery of Rail Projects across Australia.
In this context, State Governments have shifted their approach and are now mandating Systems Engineering to be applied on Rail Projects.
Purpose
This presentation explores some of the challenges and opportunities for improvement in the implementation of Systems Engineering in Rail.
Approach
We give an overview of the legacy Design and Construct approach and propose a definition of Systems Engineering and Systems Assurance (SESA), as well as an overview of what this includes and where it applies in the lifecycle of a project. Drawing on data from projects in industries where Systems Engineering methodologies have been applied for decades, we present the benefits and assess the relevance of Systems Engineering to the Rail Industry.
Based on observations from recent rail projects in Australia, we identify some challenges faced by multi-disciplinary teams to implement Systems Engineering, focusing on some differences between adding Systems Engineering on a project versus embedding Systems Engineering in the framework of the project.
Insights
We discuss some aspects to consider and opportunities for improvement when it comes to implementing better embedded Systems Engineering on projects, ultimately aiming at delivering projects through a fully integrated Systems Engineering process to see improvements in the delivery outcomes, including quality, costs, conformance to contractual requirements and client satisfaction.