INCOSE sign MoU with IEE

One of the targets for INCOSE, and the UK Chapter in particular, is to develop working relationships with other professional and standards-setting bodies. We have been working for a while with the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) to develop terms of reference for co-operative working. Specifically, the IEE has developed a Professional Electronic Network for Systems Engineering (PeNSE) who wish to work with us and deliver best practice SE to their membership as well as ours. To this end, Philip John, Stuart Arnold and I attended a meeting at the IEE on 14th October this year where a Memorandum of Understanding was finalised between the two organisations. It is signed on behalf of INCOSE by me and by John Snoderly, the INCOSE President, represented at the meeting by Bill Ewald, Director of INCOSE for Strategic Growth. Signatures on behalf of the IEE were by Steve Wilmott, lately head of the IEE PeNSE, and by Mike Sterling their President, represented at the meeting by Kate Barnham, their Administrator. Future liaison will be between Stuart who is our appointed Director for liaison with IEE, and Jon Holt who has taken over from Steve. Also below is a picture of Michael Faraday supervising proceedings after the meeting.

During the session, five topics were set for immediate collaboration between IEE and INCOSE UK:

• IEE are to join in the INCOSE UKAB Working Group on recommendation of SE course content to be taught to all Engineering Undergraduates
• INCOSE are to join in the IEE project ‘SESAME’ for introduction of Systems Engineering to Small and Medium Enterprises
• One of IEE’s target areas is the recommendation of SE processes and standards. To this end, they are to review the INCOSE SE Handbook with a view to endorsing its use to their members.
• IEE are to join in the effort to upgrade the Requirements Engineering content of the forthcoming up-issue of the SE Handbook (point of contact: Ian Alexander)
• A longer-term aim is for INCOSE UK and IEE to implement an Accreditation scheme for Systems Engineers.

 Paul Davies