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Technologies | Software Engineering Development Laboratories | Software Process
TechnologiesThe Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) Automation and Data Systems Division has experience performing systems and software engineering projects related to:
Systems and Software EngineeringThe Automation and Data Systems Division has approximately 150 staff members with technical degrees in computer science or a related field. Educational levels vary from bachelor to doctorate degrees, and the staff has a wide range of experience from microprocessor-based systems to large, highly distributed computing environments. More than 40 systems and software engineering projects are active at any given time, ranging from small consulting contracts to multimillion dollar development projects. The software engineering process is a major focus and we use a software life cycle appropriate for each specific project. Because SwRI does not maintain a product line, custom solutions are offered for each project undertaken; therefore, the particular software process applied for each client is unique and clearly identified in SwRI's proposed scope of work. SwRI staff regularly participate in conferences and standards activities and publish papers in areas of project activity.
Development LaboratoriesNearly 20 software development laboratories are maintained and filled with state-of-the-art computers and software purchased by SwRI. Our staff is fluent in a large number of languages with the primary emphasis on C#, C++, and Java. Operating system platforms such as the Microsoft Windows™ family and several variants of UNIX are in widespread use. Because of our staff diversity and years of experience, most computer languages and operating systems have been used.
Systems and Software ProcessWith more than 30 years of systems and software development experience, SwRI has formulated a disciplined process for conducting systems and software development projects. This process, modeled after the Capability Maturity Model® Integration (CMMI®) developed by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) at Carnegie Mellon University, focuses on the development of quality systems, on-time and within budget. An integrated management and engineering process is used across the organization. Information is shared across projects within the Organization. As a result, problems are anticipated and minimized, or prevented altogether.
In 2008, a Class A SCAMPISM, the Standard CMMI® appraisal method for process improvement, was conducted in the Automation and Data Systems Division against the Software Engineering Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI®) for Development, Version 1.2, resulting in a Level 5 rating. The SCAMPI A is the most rigorous method and the only method that can result in a rating. The CMMI®-DEV provides guidance for managing, measuring, and monitoring development processes. Level 5, the highest level of the CMMI®-DEV model, requires the use of standard processes across the organization for both the management and engineering aspects of projects. Those standard processes are tailored to suit the needs of a particular project. Additionally, at Level 5, we establish quantitative objectives for quality and process performance, and use them together with an understanding of common causes of variation, to manage process improvement. The benefit of our software process improvement program to our clients lies in its contribution to more predictable and efficient software projects, producing high-quality software systems, on time and within budget.
For more information on software engineering core strengths capabilities at SwRI or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Susan Crumrine at scrumrine@swri.org or (210) 522-2089. We can offer you insights about how to specify the lowest cost approach to solving your systems and software engineering problem.
®CMMI is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by Carnegie Mellon University.
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Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 11 technical divisions. |
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September 30, 2008 |
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