Arthur D Hall - My Pioneers of Systems Engineering ( Post #14 )

Introduction

Today, there is a controversy concerning the degree of holistic perspective and nature of systems engineering. At the center of this controversy is the level of compatibility between positivist/reductionist and antipositivism/holistic based paradigms. Everyone who knows me in INCOSE knows that I am part of that internal stream of thought advocating for a true "systems approach" ( holistic based paradigm) in systems engineering as a way to create systems that address real socio-technical challenges, which are the ones engineering faces in our time.

This true "systems approach" is what sets systems engineering apart from other traditional engineering disciplines when seeking solutions, which employ a bottom-up approach. But today, that systems engineering based on systems fundamentals that revolutionized engineering with major innovations in the 1940s in the field of military and aerospace systems, is now more focused on solving systems that are products (artifacts).

In my opinion, systems engineering should revisit those principles, re-empower them in our practice, considering they complement a more physically systems-focused approach inherent to a more traditional engineering in a specific domain. That's why I'm passionate about remembering those pioneers who showcased those principles, such as Arthur David Hall, or from my previous posts by Simon Ramo or Derek Hitchins, and soon many others, so that we never forget them and keep them in mind.

Arthur D Hall Bio

Arthur David Hall (April 13, 1924 – March 31, 2006) was an American electrical engineer and a pioneering figure in systems engineering. He authored the influential textbook "A Methodology for Systems Engineering" in 1962. Born in Lynchburg, Virginia, Hall served in the U.S. Army during World War II before studying electrical engineering at Princeton University, graduating in 1949.

His career included roles at Bell Labs and teaching at the University of Pennsylvania's Moore School of Electrical Engineering. Hall was a founding member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ( IEEE ) and served as the first editor of the IEEE Transactions on Systems Science and Cybernetics in 1965. He was recognized as a senior IEEE fellow in 2000 for his contributions to systems engineering methodology and telecommunications policy and practice.

Arthur D Hall Source of Inspiration

It is sometimes stated that systems engineering is a “systematic” approach as a process consisting of a number of steps carried out in a fixed order. This reveals a poor understanding of systems engineering. The broad interpretation of the term "system" in everyday language poses a challenge for systems engineering. Techniques, processes, and approaches are often misconstrued as novel under the guise of systems engineering, merely because they follow a sequential pattern, despite being rooted in traditional engineering. This results in systems engineering being occasionally disregarded as "something we already do" or "just common sense," and leads to a failure to recognize and emphasize the true essence and advantages of systems engineering like like the one taught to us by Hall in his masterpiece "A Methodology for Systems Engineering".

Hall's "A Methodology for Systems Engineering" from 1962 is among the earliest significant books directly related to systems engineering. It was the first to covers both philosophical and technical aspects of systems engineering. The term systems engineering can be traced back to Bell Labs in the 1940s, where Hall began his career as an electrical engineer. His book is divided into four main parts: philosophical foundations, problem definition, decision making, and systems synthesis and analysis. It covers a wide range of topics, including the explanation of systems engineering, fundamental concepts, needs analysis, value systems, decision making, and various approaches to system synthesis and analysis ( so-called systems approach ).

An effective systems approach enables the development of valuable domain-independent system concepts, abstractions, principles, and models, which in turn support the practice of systems engineering. Domain specialization supplements this by incorporating specific knowledge of critical constraints, functions, and performance parameters within the domain.

Thank you Arthur D Hall

We could dare to say that since the arrival of Hall's book in 1962, systems engineering faces challenges well beyond the sphere of engineering, but in my opinion, as I observe the state of the practice today we are at risk of this essence of systems engineering shifting from creating socio-technical systems to primarily engineering products in a particular domain, which are referred to as "systems" but are essentially just components within larger socio-technical systems.

Thank you, Arthur, for this masterpiece. Rereading it helps me confirm that systems engineering is definitely a different type of engineering. It deviates from the core engineering disciplines such as mechanical, civil, electrical, and material seeing that these engineering are based on the hard sciences; which is none other than the engineering that most engineers, currently working in engineering organizations, have been educated in at university, and that we work in across all branches of engineering.That is why the implementation of effective and real systems approaches remains challenging in engineering organizations today.

We must get true systems engineering back in time to address our rapidly deteriorating world and its much more complex global challenges. Systems engineers need to understand elements of systems science and systems thinking to be able to operate as effective systems engineers through the systems approach.