Systems-of-Systems CoE: Systems in Context

With the adoption of a net-centric approach to information management, developers are increasingly recognizing that systems operate in a broader context today than in the past. Most importantly, changing threat situations increase the need for flexibility and adaptability in the way warfighters configure and apply suites of systems to respond to change. The notion of “Systems-of-Systems” (SoS) is becoming a critical perspective in thinking about systems. Examples of SoS, either existing or proposed, can be found in all societal sectors: air and road transportation, power grids, healthcare, water management, industrial processes, building complexes, critical infrastructures, enterprise systems, and smart homes and cities.

In 2006, the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology charged the Systems and Software Engineering Directorate to develop guidance for Systems Engineering of SoS, recognizing the value of systems engineering as a key enabler of successful systems acquisition and the growing importance of systems interdependencies in the achievement of warfighter capability.

Most military systems today are part of an SoS even if they are not explicitly recognized as such. Operationally, the DoD acts as an SoS as the battle space commander brings together a mix of systems in an operation to meet mission objectives. SoS systems engineering typically focuses on the evolution of capability over time, with initial efforts working to enhance the way current systems work together, anticipating change in internal or external effects on the SoS, and eventually adding new functionality through new systems or changes to existing systems.