Systems, Man & Cybernetics - January 2017 - 24
actions, situations, or events, so that personnel working as
method implemented as an engineering process and suppart of the SoS have to modify the constituent systems
ported by an analysis technique to enhance the affordance
close to the point of employment so that they can converge
of the SoS constituents for MEI transfer (MEIX) and to
toward their aims. If the necessary system modifications
reveal potential undesirable transfers.
are not feasible, the users' subsequent failure to achieve
Research addressing the problem of how to keep an
their objectives may have consequences ranging from
SoS FFP will be summarized in this article. The choice of
increased costs to loss of life
research topic was motivated by
or property.
author Hinsley's obser vations
A CASE that might adversely
while working in the defense
affect
an SoS being FFP can be
industry with several companies
The SoS not being
categorized as known, knownover a career of more than 30
FFP is often due
unknown, unknown-known, and
years. There appeared to be a tento unforeseen
unknown-unknown [3]. Engineerdency for delivered products and
i ng a ct ion s ca n be t a ken to
services to need modification,
circumstances,
enhance fitness, and the better
despite meeting their requireactions, situations,
known these CASEs are (i.e., the
ments, to maintain a desired capamore predictable the CASE), the
bility from the composing SoS
or events.
more directly they can be affected
and, therefore, to be made FFP.
by engineer ing actions. Ring
Changes in the SoS situation (e.g.,
states, "a system formalized by
the operational environment, the
prescient design cannot respond to unforeseen situarequirement, or the SoS capability components) often rentions" [4]. The realization of a system's capability is
dered the SoS not FFP due to a combination of these two
dependent on the simultaneous readiness of several comreasons in various proportions:
ponents, which are described in the "SoS Constituents,
◆ The SoS capability was degraded and could no lonTransfers, and Affordances" section as eight lines of
ger bring about the desired outcome for which it
development (LoD). The LoDs are the aspects of capabiliwas designed.
ty that must be ready simultaneously for the capability in
◆ The SoS needed to provide some different functionalquestion to be realized. Personnel is one of the eight
ity to that for which it was designed to achieve the
LoDs. Robustness and resilience can be designed into a
desired outcome.
system, but any benefit they provide against unknownCauses of FFP loss were dynamic and varied, often due
unknown factors is largely due to serendipity. The major
to situational changes dictating that modifications to the
LoD contributing to FFP maintenance in this circumSoS constituent systems, to recover the SoS FFP, had to be
stance is often the personnel working as part of the SoS.
made close to or at the point of utilization, frequently by
In support General Sir Rupert Smith states, "on every
the personnel working as part of the SoS using workoccasion that I have been sent to achieve some military
arounds. A work-around is an engineering solution that is
objective in order to serve a political purpose, I, and
sufficient but rarely optimal in terms of efficiency or cost.
those with me, have had to change our method and reorSystems engineering shows that corrective action is most
ganize in order to succeed. Until this was done, we could
effectively and economically done early in the life cycle,
not use our force effectively. On the basis of my lengthy
but it is acknowledged that total avoidance of late-stage
experience, I have come to consider this as normal-a
modifications is unfeasible, which posed the question:
necessary part of every operation" [5].
"What could be done by suppliers to facilitate maintenance
Unknown-unknown CASEs pose a significant challenge
of FFP?" It may be noted that one of the characteristics of
that needs to be addressed. Building on Ashby's work on
an SoS noted by Maier [1] is that it is evolutionary; this
requisite variety [6], Boardman and Sauser [7] state, "the
implies that the development of an SoS always requires the
uncertain and unknowable environment in which the SoS
adaptation of an existing (legacy) set of systems-there is
must operate presents a mystery of endless proportions, the
no clear sheet.
only proper response to which is to have increasing variety,
of a continually emerging nature, to deal with unforeseeable
Reconfigurability
reality that eventually becomes clear and present danger."
This situation means that capability-providing SoS will
The Need for Reconfigurability
have
constituent systems that are needed to operate in
In his holistic approach to risk management, Hopkin [2]
ways for which they were not originally designed; they
notes that risk is a "circumstance, action, situation, or
will have their service lives extended; and new constituevent (CASE) with the ability to impact key dependencies."
ent systems will have to integrate into a brownfield enviSuch impacts are equivalent to the SoS not being FFP. More
ronment. Designers are able to design for agility,
generally, the SoS not being FFP (i.e., able to do what the
robustness, and resilience against bounded or foreseeable
user requires) is often due to unforeseen circumstances,
24
IEEE SyStEmS, man, & CybErnEtICS magazInE Janu ar y 2017
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Systems, Man & Cybernetics - January 2017
Systems, Man & Cybernetics - January 2017 - Cover1
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