Systems Engineering
Management
Day 3: SEM and
Environmental Engineering
Sarah Bell
Programme
9-1pm
SEM Review
Sustainable Systems
The Natural Step
Environmental Management Systems
Life Cycle Assessment
1-2pm
BREAK
2-4pm
Sustainability Assessment (Giffords)
Learning Outcomes
• Understand value of SEM in achieving sustainable
development
• Knowledge of key tools used to incorporate
sustainability into large projects and systems
– Environmental Management Systems
– Life Cycle Assessment
– Sustainability assessment
What is a system?
• Properties of a system
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Architect
Multiple parts
Interaction between parts
Emergent properties
Systems thinking
• Organisation and connection between
components
• Holism and ‘cause and effect thinking’
• Hierarchy
• Partitioning
• Lifecycles
• Subjectivity
What is systems engineering?
Systems Engineering is an interdisciplinary approach and
means to enable the realization of successful systems. It
focuses on defining customer needs and required
functionality early in the development cycle, documenting
requirements, and then proceeding with design synthesis
and system validation while considering the complete
problem. Systems Engineering considers both the
business and the technical needs of all customers with the
goal of providing a quality product that meets the user
needs (INCOSE).
Why is Systems Engineering of interest to
Environmental Engineers?
• Environmental systems thinking
– Holism, hierarchy, partitioning, lifecycles
• Managing environmental projects and systems
– Requirements, users, systems architecture etc
• Integrate environment and sustainability into large
projects
Key concepts
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V-diagram
Left shift
Requirements capture
Systems integration
Systems design team
Systems Engineering: SPMTE
Stages
Defines
When
Processes
Defines
What
Defines
How
Supported by
Methods
Tools
Environment
Enhances
What &
How
Enhances
What &
How
The V diagram
The V diagram
Validation
User
Satisfaction
User need
Verification
User
Requirements
System
Requirements
Architectural
Design
Sub-system
Development
Acceptance
Tests
Verification
Verification
System
Tests
Integration
Tests
Sub-system
Tests
Left shift
Left shift
Effort
Left Shift
Typical
The cost
of problems
Avoiding unnecessary work
Avoiding rework
Time
Delivery
Requirements and Acceptance
Customers/Users
Needs
Statement
Of
Requirements
Customer – Supplier Divide
Method
Of
Acceptance
Suppliers Development
Strategy
For every requirement there
must be an unambiguous
method of acceptance
All derived requirements
should be traceable to the
customer requirements
Requirements and acceptance methods should
be related – changing one forces a change in the other
Requirements and Architectural Design
Stakeholder
Requirements
System
Requirements
Architectural
Design
Requirements Elaboration
Functional
Modelling
Statement
Of
Need
Stakeholder
Requirements
Usage
Modelling
System
Requirements
Architectural
Design
Sub-system
Requirements
Performance
Modelling
Requirements cannot be elaborated to sub-system
level without a concurrent modelling process
System of Systems Integration
Different overlays
provide different
capability
Connectivity
overlays
Asset Map
Integration of Specialisations
A system engineer does not need to know everything but should know
what the limits of his/her knowledge is.
Systems Engineer
System
Domain Systems
Engineers
Domain Engineers
Component
Domain
System Design Team
• Platform for SE to organise and lead the technical
aspects of the development
• Develops requirements at all levels
• System architecture
• System design
• Fabrication
• Test
• Installation
The SE should have a major say
• Acceptance
in the function and make-up of
such a group. (Reilly 1993)
Syndicate exercise
• How would you set up a
systems design team to
deliver an upgrade of the
Act On CO2 carbon
footprint calculator to
incorporate indirect carbon
impacts of waste and
water?
Syndicate exercise
http://actonco2.direct.gov.uk/index.html
Syndicate exercise
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What is the role of the systems engineer?
What other roles are needed?
How would you ‘left-shift’?
How would you follow the ‘v-diagram’?
How would you capture requirements?
Sustainable Systems Engineering
Management
Tools for sustainable systems
• Part of the ‘context’ of a project
– Policy drivers
• Requirements capture and testing
• One of the specialisations in the System Design
Team
Systems Engineering and Sustainable
Development
• Limits
– People
– Politics
– Equity
• Uncertainty and complexity?
• Fallacy of control?
SEM and Sustainable Development
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Soft systems
Stakeholders
All systems are soft systems?
Defining system boundaries
– The planet?
– Local and global
• Defining goals and objectives
SEM and Sustainable Development
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Bottom up emergence
Top-down architecture design and control
Dynamic systems, dynamic requirements
Responsiveness to environmental and social
change
SEM What is it good for?
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Large projects
Integration of systems and sub-systems
Capturing requirements
Testing requirements
SEM What does it need to work on?
• Stakeholders
– Client management
– Participation, deliberation
• Modesty?
• Dynamic systems, complexity, emergence, bottom
up
Environmental Systems Engineers cf
technical experts
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Participatory v contributory knowledge
Integrators
Environment
Technology
People
Integrating sustainability into large projects
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The Natural Step
Environmental Management Systems
Life Cycle Assessment
Sustainability assessment
The Natural Step
www.naturalstep.org
Basic scientific principles
• Nothing disappears
– Conservation of matter
– First law of thermodynamics
• Everything spreads
– Second law of thermodynamics
• There is value in structure
– Economics and ecosystems
• Photosynthesis pays the bills
The funnel
Four System Conditions
In a sustainable society, nature is not subject to
systematically increasing:
1. concentrations of substances extracted from the
earth’s crust
2. concentrations of substances produced by society
3. degradation by physical means
4. and, in that society, people are no subject to
conditions that systematically undermine their
capacity to meet their needs
Manfred Max-Neef’s Nine Human Needs
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Subsistence
Protection
Affection
Understanding
Participation
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Leisure
Creation
Identity
Freedom
Backcasting
• Start from vision of sustainable system
• Work backwards to develop plans and actions to
achieve change
ABCD Process
Pret a Manger
• ‘Charity run’ food for homeless shelters, diverted
four tonnes per week from landfill
• Electric vans, reduce CO2 emssions by 3 tonnes
per year
• Changing packaging saved 8 tonnes of waste to
landfill per year
• Electricity from 100% renewable sources
ICI Paints and Forum for the Future
• TNS framework to develop user friendly Life
Cycle Assessment tool
• Used for senior managers to highlight most
harmful points in supply chain, process and
product life
• Identify high level strategic priorities for
improving sustainability
The Natural Step References
• www.naturalstep.org
• Cook D. (2004) The Natural Step Totnes, Green
Books.
Environmental Management Systems
Environmental Management Systems
• Manage environmental issues systematically,
efficiently and efficiently
• Part of overall management system
• Produce corporate environmental plan which will
lead to improved environmental performance
Drivers for implementing EMS
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Energy efficiency
Waste minimisation
Green image
Competitive advantage
Supply chain pressures
Environmental legislation protectin
Staff morale and corporate social responsibility
EMS – Improving Environmental Performance
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Setting goals and objectives
Identify, obtain and organise resources
Identify and assess options
Assess risks and priorities
Implement selected set of options
Audit performance and provide feedback
Apply environmental management tools
EMS – Factors for Success
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Commitment and senior levels
Integration with business plan
Goals and objectives set at senior levels
Feedback on success with appropriate
adjustments
• Continual improvement
Integrated Management System
Environmental Management Programme
• Schedules, resources and responsibilities
• Specific actions and priorities
• Individual processes, projects, products, services,
sites and facilities
• Dynamic and revised regularly
EMS
• Systematic and
comprehensive
• Proactive
• Corporate level
commitment
• Feedback and continual
improvement
• Teamwork
EMP
• Relatively independent
subsystems
• Applied sciences and
engineering
• Focus on error-free
operations
• Data on day-to-day
operations
Environmental Policy Statement
• High level goals and commitment from senior
management
• Protect the environment
• Prevent pollution
• Continuously monitor and improve performance
Basic Management Model
ACT
Revise, learn,
correct
PLAN
Set goals and
objectives
CHECK
Audit
DO
Implementation
and Operation
Planning
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Objectives and targets
Procedures and programmes
Assign responsibility
Needs assessment
Baseline audit
Strategies for implementation
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Incremental
Test unit
System-wide
Build-your-own
Bailout
Feedback
• Auditing, measuring, monitoring
• Registration with certifying body
Standardising EMS
• ISO 14000
– Followed on from ISO 9000, Total Quality Management
• EMAS
– European
– Eco-Management and Audit Scheme
ISO 14000
• Series of standards and guidance
• 14001 – Environmental Management System
Specification
• 14004 – Environmental Management System
Guideline
• Auditing, Labelling, Performance Evaluation, Life
Cycle Assessment
ISO 14001
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Not specific environmental performance standards
Framework for holistic, strategic approach
Generic requirements
Assurance to management and employees
External stakeholders
Customers
Regulations
Criticisms of EMS
• Organisations set own objectives and targets
– Does not guarantee improved performance
• Audits focus on the EMS, not on environmental
performance
• Environment may be forgotten once EMS
standard is achieved
Criticisms of EMS
• Do not set limits on environmental performance
– Pollution, energy, resource use etc
• Too bureaucratic
• Can be used as a smokescreen or for marketing
to clients and stakeholders
EMS References
• Kirkland L., Wolfwillow Environmental and Thompson D. (2002)
Environmental Management Systems, chapter 2 in D. Thompson (ed.)
Tools for Environmental Management, Gabriola Island, New Society
Publishers, 19-42.
• Netherwood A. (1996) Environmental Management Systems, chapter
3 in R. Welford (ed.) Corporate Environmental Management 1 (2nd
edition), London, Earthscan, 37-60.
• Tinsley S. and Pillai I. (2006) Environmental Management Systems
London, Earthscan.
Life Cycle Assessment
Life Cycle Assessment
• Cradle to Grave, Cradle to Cradle
• Map and measure all environmental impacts of a
product
• Inform strategies for improving environmental
performance
• Decisions about products and services
Syndicate exercise
• Draw the life cycle of a can
of Coca-Cola
• Choose either the can or
the drink
Life Cycle Assessment
• Objective process
• Product, process or activity
• Identify and quantify energy and material use, and
releases to the environment
• Evaluate and implement opportunities for
improvement
• Only environmental impacts
Entire Life Cycle
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Extraction
Processing
Manufacturing
Transport and distribution
Use, Reuse, Recycling
Maintenance
Disposal
Life Cycle Assessment
• Provide complete a picture as possible
• Contribute to understanding environmental
consequences of human activities
• Provide decision makers with information
Users of LCA
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Product designers
Shareholders, financiers, insurers
Customers
Environmental and consumer groups
Regulators
LCA Methodology
(Society for Environmental Toxicity and Chemistry)
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Goal and scope definition
Inventory analysis
Environmental impact assessment
Improvements assessment
• ISO 14040
Goal and scope definition
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Purpose
Assumptions
Functional unit
Boundaries
Data
Inventory analysis
• All activities and processes
• Quantitative list of inputs and outputs
• Materials and energy
Environmental impact assessment
• Assess potential effect on the environment from
the inventory
• Compile and evaluate different impacts
• Different assessment methods
• Score them according to agreed criteria
• Result in single score or index for comparison
Nappies
• Cloth versus disposable nappy debate
• DEFRA Report 2008
• http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Document.aspx?Docume
nt=WR0705_7589_FRP.pdf
Strengths of LCA
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Complete systems overview
Identifies critical elements
Identifies knowledge gaps
Guidelines for action
Increases awareness
Global view, rather than singles issues
Provides data for environmental decisions and
debate
Limitations of LCA
• Static – snapshot in time
• Quality depends on data, boundaries,
assumptions etc.
• Results may be difficult to evaluate
• Limited knowledge of complex processes
• Both scientific and subjective criteria
• Costs a lot of time and money
Life Cycle Assessment References
• Higgins A. and Thompson D. (2002) Life Cycle Assessment, chapter
18 in D. Thompson (ed.) Tools for Environmental Management,
Gabriola Island, New Society Publishers, 293-306.
• Jonson G. (1996) LCA – a tool for measuring environmental
performance Leatherhead, Surrey.
• Welford R. (1996) Life Cycle Assessment, chapter 8 in R. Welford
(ed.) Corporate Environmental Management 1 (2nd edition), London,
Earthscan, 138-147.