The Royal Academy of Engineering Creating systems that work: Principles of engineering systems for the 21st century As Britain’s national academy for engineering, we bring together the country’s most eminent engineers from all disciplines to promote excellence in the science, art and practice of engineering. Our strategic priorities are to enhance the UK’s engineering capabilities, to celebrate excellence and inspire the next generation, and to lead debate by guiding informed thinking and influencing public policy. Strategic Priorities The Academy’s work programmes are driven by three strategic priorities, each of which provides a key contribu- tion to a strong and vibrant engineering sector and to the health and wealth of society. Enhancing national Recognising excellence and Leading debate capabilities inspiring the next generation As a priority, we encourage, support Excellence breeds excellence. We Using the leadership and expertise and facilitate links between celebrate engineering excellence of our Fellowship, we guide academia and industry. Through and use it to inspire, support and informed thinking, influence public targeted national and international challenge tomorrow’s engineering policy making, provide a forum for programmes, we enhance - and leaders. We focus our initiatives to the mutual exchange of ideas, and reflect abroad - the UK’s develop excellence and, through pursue effective engagement with performance in the application of creative and collaborative activity, society on matters within our science, technology transfer, and we demonstrate to the young, and competence. The Academy the promotion and exploitation of those who influence them, the advocates progressive, forward- innovation. We support high quality relevance of engineering to society. looking solutions based on impartial engineering research, encourage an advice and quality foundations, and interdisciplinary ethos, facilitate works to enhance appreciation of international exchange and provide the positive role of engineering and a means of determining and its contribution to the economic disseminating best practice. In strength of the nation. particular, our activities focus on complex and multidisciplinary areas of rapid development. The Royal Academy of Engineering promotes excellence The Royal Academy of Engineering in the science, art and practice of engineering. 29 Great Peter Street, London, SW1P 3LW Tel: 020 7227 0500 Fax: 020 7233 0054 Registered charity number 293074 www.raeng.org.uk Reg. user NoNo.. 07/E/1737 Creating systems that work: Principles of engineering systems for the 21st century Front Cover: Courtesy of Transport for London. Reg. User No. 07/E/1737 The London Underground is a highly complex system, bringing together mechanical, civil and electrical engineering and the skills and efforts of the people who run it. But passengers see it solely as an efficient way of getting around London. The iconic map embraces all of that complexity in a model that tells a passenger all that is needed to plan a journey. Creating systems that work: Principles of engineering systems for the 21st century © The Royal Academy of Engineering, 2007 ISBN: 1-903496-34-9 June 2007 Published by The Royal Academy of Engineering 29 Great Peter Street, London, SW1P 3LW Tel: 020 7227 0500 Fax: 020 7233 0054 www.raeng.org.uk Editors: Registered Charity Number: 293074 Dr Chris Elliott FREng Professor Peter Deasley FREng Foreword The challenges of the 21st century, from climate change to bird flu, can only be met by more effective use of science and technology, unless we want to go back to living in caves. Science provides the insight to understand the world around us; engineering uses technology to build the systems that Acknowledgements ‘When we mean to build, meet our needs – energy, transport, food, health, entertainment and the rest. Those systems must work: do what they should and not do what they This guide was produced by the We first survey the plot, then draw the model, should not, do it on time and within budget, do it safely and reliably. These Academy’s Working Party on Integrated System Design: And when we see the figure of the house, things do not happen by chance; they happen by design. Professor Peter Deasley FREng Engineering systems, and the problems that they seek to solve, are (Chairman) Then must we rate the cost of the erection, becoming more complex. It is not possible to design part of the system in Dr Bill Bardo FREng Which if we do find outweighs ability isolation without considering the problem and its solution as a whole. This Professor Peter Brook FREng What do we then, but draw anew the model spans professional disciplines – it is not possible to conduct mechanical Dr Chris Elliott FREng In fewer offices, or at least desist to build at all?’ engineering in isolation from the other branches of engineering – and it Professor David Fisk CB FREng reaches outside the technical domain to encompass the environment of Bardolph, Henry IV, Part II, Act 1 Professor Max Fordham OBE FREng the system. This includes not only the natural environment but also the human one – the relationships between the stakeholders and the legal and Professor David Gardner OBE FREng social framework within which the system must be built and used. We need Professor Ken Hambleton FREng NASA specified and developed, at great expense, a Integrated System Design that looks holistically at both the need and the Professor Phil John ball point pen that Apollo astronauts could use in solution, and we need engineers who can think holistic to carry it out. Professor Keith Robinson The Royal Academy of Engineering supports Visiting Professors in Professor David Stupples space where gravity would not make the ink flow. Integrated System Design, building on related schemes in engineering John Turnbull FREng Russian cosmonauts used pencils. design and sustainable engineering. The guidance in this booklet will be a with support from Academy staff: Moral: specify what you want to achieve, not how to achieve it welcome support to their work in helping universities to develop the Dr Bob Ditchfield engineering curriculum for the 21st century, setting out some general David Foxley principles and ways of thinking without prescriptively giving the answer. Engineering design, especially Integrated System Design, is an art as well as a science and our students will learn from the practical experiences of the The Working Party is grateful to the Visiting Professors as much as the systematic approach set out here. following for their helpful and constructive review comments: We can no longer afford the luxury of educating engineers purely in narrow Dr John Roulston OBE FREng specialisms. The UK’s future prosperity depends on engineers who, as well Professor David Andrews FREng as being expert in their own discipline, can contribute to team efforts that break down traditional silo walls. We need them in the design teams; Professor John McDermid FREng equally we need them within the customer organisations for engineered Professor Roger Venables systems. As manufacture and detailed design increasingly is conducted outside the UK, Integrated System Design remains the place at the top of the food chain where we can excel and create the greatest added value. John Baxter FREng President, Institution of Mechanical Engineers 3 Preface Contents Why should you read this document? Preface 4 Why should you read this document? 4 This guide will help you if you work in: Introduction 6 This guide is written for an education – both engineering students and those who are responsible audience that is familiar • Context 6 for planning and delivering their education with everyday engineering Rising to the challenge 6 language and concepts.We • engineering – practising engineers and engineering managers who have apologise to others for to design and build systems that work within an increasingly complex What is a system? 8 whom the terminology and demanding business environment that we have used is not How are systems designed? 9 familiar, and we hope that business – those responsible for specifying, procuring and operating systems • What is changing? 10 the sense remains clear. that meet their business expectations, in the public or private sectors. Six principles for integrated system design 11 This is not a textbook, nor is it a recipe book. It does not tell you what to do. Principle 1: Debate, define, revise and pursue the purpose 12 But it does offer insight into the challenges of building systems in the 21st century and a set of principles that might be incorporated into education Principle 2:Think holistic 14 and management. Principle 3: Follow a disciplined procedure 16 Customers rarely want a system. What they want is a capability to fulfil Principle 4: Be creative 18 effectively a business objective. The system, be it a building, vehicle, Principle 5:Take account of the people:To err is human 20 computer, weapon or generator, is usually only part of the means to deliver Principle 6: Manage the project and the relationships 22 the capability – housing, transport, calculations, defence or electricity. Engineers are responsible for identifying with the customer the capability Some examples of integrated system design in practice 24 that is really needed and expressing it as a system that can be built and is Motor vehicle testing – the MOT test 24 affordable. Military systems 24 If the UK is to maintain and grow its strength in designing and building systems, we have to improve both the way