Centre for Systems Engineering
The Cranfield University Centre for Systems Engineering is based at Shrivenham and was established in 1998 to meet the need to provide education in Systems Engineering. Our group is unique in the UK and probably in Europe in its breadth of expertise, integrating industrial, operational and technological experience. We have senior MOD support, and our Postgraduate programmes in Systems Engineering provide education in Systems Engineering to the whole defence community.
The aim of the group is to deliver Systems Engineering expertise to the defence and non-defence communities in order to equip them to tackle today's complex systems problems.
What is Systems Engineering
Systems Engineering (SE) covers a broad spectrum of activities, ranging from the production of a single component to the integration and management of complex systems of systems. Systems Engineering for Defence (SED) embraces all these activities, which are required for the most effective and efficient delivery of defence capability. It demands holistic views to be taken at every stage of the acquisition and other lifecycle processes and in particular a sharp focus to be applied to the iterative stages of the requirements capture process.
Systems Engineering for Defence is therefore a combination of both soft and hard systems engineering. It is the application of the rigours and disciplines of each in such a way that defence capability can be delivered against constantly changing circumstances.
The definition of systems engineering for defence currently in use and approved by the Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (Systems) is:
"The set of activities which control the overall design, implementation and integration of a complex set of interacting components or systems in order to meet the needs of all users and other stakeholders within the constraints arising from the system's operational and developmental environments."
Therefore Systems Engineering for Defence must apply scientific principles and proven methods to the whole system, for the whole life, co-ordinating all of the processes and technologies involved to achieve balanced solutions in capability, time and cost.
Systems engineering develops fundamental skills and competencies some of which are described here.
Staff
List of staff in this group.
Contact Us
Mrs B Holden
Tel: +44 (0) 1793 785289
Email: syseng@cranfield.ac.uk
Centre for Information Systems Engineering
Communications and Wireless Networks
Centre for Simulation and Analytics
Centre for Systems Engineering
