The primary objective of INCOSE's Technical Infrastructure is to advance world class systems engineering through technical initiatives that relate to all facets of systems engineering, including basic and applied research, and the application and practice of systems engineering to commercial, government, and academic endeavors. The customers for our products and services are the general INCOSE membership, the Corporate Advisory Board, and Board of Directors. The Technical Infrastructure undertakes work as directed by its customers and/or the general interest of its participants.

The Technical Infrastructure is led by the Technical Leadership Team. The organization of this team is based upon the identification of functional requirements, those that Grow the technical capabilities and resources of INCOSE, those that Govern the technical projects and standards, and those that Share the technical knowledge and products.

The INCOSE Technical Matrix

INCOSE organizes its technical activities with the assistance of the Technical Matrix. There are Application Sectors listed across one axis and Systems Engineering enablers along the other. The enablers are WHAT we practice and the Sectors are WHERE we practice it. So every project, activity or interest, or even a member’s experience, can be expressed as a map of intersections on the matrix. This provides an ability to map all our activities in an integrated way that has not been possible before.

INCOSE's Technical Matrix

In addition to sectors and enablers, there are cross-cut categories that can apply to any enabler or sector. Certification and education are cross-cut categories.

The Technical Matrix explicitly recognizes INCOSE is more than just aerospace and defense by establishing a broad range of Application Sectors along one axis. Each enabler and each sector has a dedicated member appointed to the rank of Assistant Director whose role is to stay informed with the happenings and direction of their appointed area of interest and to participate and communicate with the broader community in order to help establish and manage a strategic view of INCOSE’s technical capabilities and interests.

Enablers (WHAT we practice)

Systems Science: The theoretical foundations of systems engineering, including the system concept, complexity theory, system dynamics, and operations research. It provides principles and guidelines for developing systems engineering processes.

Technical Processes: The processes constituting the core of systems engineering, providing practical and efficient ways of handling the complexity of engineering activities throughout the lifecycle of systems, from user requirements elicitation to system retirement.

SE Management Processes: The processes required to ensure the timely and appropriate application of the technical processes, such as configuration management, review processes, risk management and planning. Some of these processes are variations of normal project management processes, adapted to the complex environment of systems engineering.

SE Support Processes: Processes not directly involved in developing a system, but important in the development of systems engineering itself; such as process measurement, evaluation and improvement. Also the documentation of this development in handbooks and guides.

Modeling and Tools: Models, software-based tools, and the databases required to operate them are indispensable to the cost-effective execution of the technical, management and support processes. Their development documentation and interoperability, as well as the training required to use them effectively, are included here.

Specialty Engineering: Theories, processes and procedures that focus on aspects of systems not directly associated with their functionality, but essential to achieving a cost-effective life cycle, such as reliability, maintainability, supportability, constructability, environmental and human factors, and life cycle cost.

Sectors (WHERE we practice)

Public Interest: A collection of issues of major concern to society in general, such as anti-terrorism, environmental issues, and health care, where systems engineering is used as a methodology for understanding the complexity of the issue and develop approaches to solutions.

Infrastructure: This includes economic, social and political infrastructure including fixed assets, networks of assets, and/or facilities used to support products or provide services. The focus of this sector is on opportunities to apply systems engineering in the development and management of infrastructure.

Transportation: The application of systems engineering to the development and design of transportation systems and equipment.

Information Systems: The application of systems engineering to the acquisition, management, storage and retrieval of information and knowledge. This includes data mining, knowledge management, intelligence assessment, and all types of business data management.

Enterprise: The application of systems engineering to the understanding, development or optimization of an enterprise; that is, people applying actions for a mutual purpose. This includes intelligent enterprises, business systems, and systems of systems.

Aerospace and Defence: This comprises civil and military aircraft, military space systems, weapons systems, military C4ISR systems, naval platforms and ground equipment and systems.

Market-Driven Products: A wide industry sector comprising the food and beverage, domestic appliance and entertainment industries. It is focused on the product - its development, marketing and distribution - rather than on the manufacturing process.

Emerging Technologies: A collection of technologies in their early development stages where systems engineering will enable their transition and insertion into current and future systems to enhance capabilities and/or provide new functionality.