The Business Case for Systems Engineering Study: Assessing Project Performance from Sparse Data

Approximately ten cases have been documented of people falling out of the side exit doors of moving passenger trains throughout the US. Most of these individuals were elderly passengers and the events usually happened late at night. Amtrak has classified most of these accidents as individuals with mental disorders or suicidal tendencies. Legal actions at the present time have been dismissed by the courts due primarily to the lack of any witnesses to the events. An investigation was conducted of a passenger car allegedly involved in one of these accidents. A number of recommendations were made including: 1) a systems engineering study of the problem, 2) an interlock system which would prevent the side exit door locking handle from being activated while the train is in motion, 3) an “All Green Board” at the engineer's station to indicate that all doors on the train are locked before starting the train, 4) a protective translucent cover installed over the regular door handle to indicate the criticality of opening this door, 5) a new warning sign on the exit doors which follows the ANSI standard, and 6) a training program, related to this dangerous situation, for all Amtrak operational personnel.

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Developing a Business Case for Systems Engineering

IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Magazine ◽

10.1109/maes.2012.6328837 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 27 (7) ◽

pp. 13-19 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Joseph P. Elm

Keyword(s):

Systems Engineering ◽

Business Case

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Single-shell tank systems engineering study work plan

10.2172/7172927 ◽

1990 ◽

Author(s):

J Garfield

Keyword(s):

Systems Engineering ◽

Work Plan ◽

Engineering Study ◽

Single Shell

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Developing an Industrial Engineering Study Plan Using ISM Approach

International Journal of Engineering Pedagogy (iJEP) ◽

10.3991/ijep.v9i3.9884 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. 20

Author(s):

Murad Andejany ◽

Ahmad Elshennawy ◽

Mohammed Darwish ◽

Haitham Bahaitham

Keyword(s):

Engineering Education ◽

Systems Engineering ◽

Academic Program ◽

International Standards ◽

Industrial Engineering ◽

Main Element ◽

Clear Understanding ◽

Interpretive Structural Modeling ◽

Engineering Study ◽

Study Plan

Recently, engineering graduates who acquired different skills, as well as leadership capabilities, are very much demanded to maintain high-level innovation, dealing with emerging technologies, and fulfilling the various needs of the public. Consequently, it is necessary that academicians in engineering programs develop appropriate curricula to achieve excellence in engineering education. Being accredited from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) is an indication that an academic program has fulfilled international standards in engineering education. The main element in ABET evaluation process is Student Outcomes (SOs) as they incorporate several capabilities and skills expected by stakeholders such as employers. In this study, we used Interpretive Structural Modeling technique (ISM), which is a soft operational research technique, to prioritize SOs and develop a precise study plan for the Industrial Engineering program at Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering (IMSE) at Kuwait University (KU). This plan showed an intelligible depiction of the relationships between the SOs and a clear direction on how to merge them within the engineering study plan. For data collection, surveys were developed and conducted to faculty members at IMSE Department at KU in addition to a set of employers within the country. The results indicated that ISM model facilitates a clear understanding of the relationships among SOs within the Industrial Engineering study plan at IMSE at KU. In addition, it recommended that students should understand the professional and ethical responsibilities at early stages of the study plan and that should be followed by training them on effective communication techniques.

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