System Engineering Management: New Dimensions in Engineering

As with most other professions, the engineering design field in America is faced with increasing competition from abroad and limited resources from within. This book presents the fundamentals of engineering design and development of new systems and products, including quality control, design methods, CAD/CAM, automation, process control, cost analysis, software implementation and, ultimately, the delivery of a finished product. It focuses on the need to define system requirements from the start, viewed in total, and integrated from a top-down/life cycle basis. In addition, it explores the fundamentals of systems engineering in terms of its objectives and applications in the development process.

In today's technology-driven markets, systems are more complex, resources scarcer, and competition fiercer than ever. Ironically, in their drive to be first to market, project managers and design engineers in many companies are reverting to the old short-term, design-it-now-fix-it-later way of operating. The hazards of such an approach should be obvious: quality suffers, production and support costs soar, and customers migrate to competitors. Now more than ever, survival depends upon the strict application of system engineering principles to the development of robust, affordable systems that fully meet user requirements.

System Engineering Management, Second Edition acquaints you with the full range of system engineering concepts, tools, and techniques. With the help of numerous, real-life case studies, Benjamin Blanchard shows you, step by step, how to apply those elements to both large- and small-scale projects. He also arms you with a blueprint for developing, implementing, and managing a total system engineering program in your company.

Professor Blanchard starts by reviewing, in depth, all of the stages of an integrated, top-down, life-cycle approach to design engineering--from analysis of customer requirements to maintenance and support, from definition of system operational concepts through material disposal and recycling. He then turns to a practical discussion of various disciplines applicable to the design process, including reliability and maintainability engineering, human factors, safety, logistics engineering, quality engineering, and value/cost engineering. This material is followed by guidance on how to use a variety of analytical tools, such as those for computer-aided front-end analysis, design review, and feedback control.

The remaining chapters are devoted to crucial management issues, with valuable guidance on the planning and development of System Engineering Management Plans (SEMPs), work breakdown structures (WBSs), cost projections, supplier selection and management, and more.

System Engineering Management, Second Edition is an essential resource for all engineers working in design, planning, and manufacturing. It is also an excellent introductory text for students of system engineering.

Gets you quickly on track with the full range of state-of-the-art system engineering tools and techniques

System Engineering Management is a complete, hands-on guide to making system engineering tools and principles an integral part of the design and development process in your organization. Professor Benjamin Blanchard arms you with a comprehensive, top-down, life-cycle approach that has been proven to reduce cost, speed up the design and development process, improve reliability, and win customers.

Fully revised and updated, this Second Edition features new and expanded coverage of such timely topics as:
* Requirements analysis
* The open architecture approach to functional analysis and allocation
* Rapid prototyping, simulation modeling, and software support systems
* Technical performance measures (TPMs)
* International aspects of supplier selection and management
* Integrated Product and Process Development (IPPD)
* Integrated Process Team (IPT).

Also new to this edition are appendices featuring additional case studies, as well as a guide to life-cycle costing, a supplier review and selection checklist, and a glossary of key terms.