Strategic Force Multiplier for Aerospace and Defense
System Integration & Test
De-Risking & Mission Validation: Testing is not just about compliance; it’s about survival. A system that passes a lab test but fails in the operational environment is a mission failure.
At Forward Engineering, we provide the strategic T&E leadership to ensure your system is integrated correctly and validated against real-world operational needs. We leverage our Principal decades of "dual-hat" experience as a "Navy Commander and as a Prime Contractor Chief Engineer" - to bridge the gap between engineering specifications and warfighter reality.
We provide the senior governance to direct your SEIT strategy, or we deploy our expert SEIT specialist to execute the hands-on integration and verification.
Our I&T Focus Areas (Oversight or Execution)
- Strategic Test Planning & Readiness: We architect the Master Test Plan (TEMP). We determine the sequence, resources, and readiness criteria required to pass critical gates (TRR, FRR). We direct the test strategy, or we deploy our test specialist to develop the detailed test programs.
- Test Environment & Lab Definition: We define the simulation and lab requirements. We know exactly what digital thread, SIL, and fielded environments are needed to replicate the threat. We oversee your lab buildup, or we deploy our lab integration specialist to configure the Software or hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) assets.
- Interface Verification & Integration Leadership: We govern the integration logic. We prioritize (ie: Avionic, Radar, EW) hardware and software interfaces to "burn down" system integration risk early. We lead the integration reviews, or we deploy our verification & integration specialists to verify physical and functional interface, and data flows.
- Requirements Verification & Validation (V&V): We audit the V&V matrix. We ensure every requirement is linked to a valid test method that the customer will accept. We enforce the rigorous traceability that Prime Contractors demand.
- Flight Test & Certification Support: We bring operational mission insight. We ensure flight test points are safe, efficient, and actually validate the mission capability. We guide the flight clearance process, or we deploy our flight test engineers to support mission control and data analysis.
- Configuration & Data Management (CM & DM): We enforce the technical baseline through CCB's and ERB's. We ensure you are testing the right configuration. We govern the CM process, or we deploy our Configuration & Data managers to track every discrepancy and ensure test readiness for baselined hardware, software and system integration.
KEY ADVANTAGES
- Mission-Centric Validation: We don't just test for "green lights"; we test for mission success. Our operational background ensures the system is validated against the harsh realities of the combat environment, not just a sterile lab spec.
- Accelerate Test Readiness (TRR): By defining a rigorous, sequenced test strategy early, we burn down unforeseen Risk to prevent the "discovery" of major issues during the Test Readiness Review, ensuring you enter formal testing on schedule.
- Reduce Re-Test Costs: We enforce disciplined interface verification before full-system integration. This "burn down" approach finds bugs early, preventing the expensive cycle of failed tests and regression testing.
Mission Impact
- Bridge the Gap Between "Spec" and "Fight": We ensure the system is validated against real-world operational concepts, not just sterile compliance matrices. We deliver a capability that solves the warfighter’s actual problem, preventing the delivery of "technically compliant" but operationally useless systems.
- Eliminate the "Late Discovery" Nightmare: By prioritizing critical interface integration and "burning down" risk early in the schedule, we identify fatal flaws when they are cheap to fix—preventing the catastrophic schedule slides that happen when defects are found during formal qualification.
- Accelerate Path to Airworthiness & Certification: We structure test programs to survive rigorous government scrutiny (NAVAIR/USAF) on the first pass. By aligning the Test & Evaluation Master Plan (TEMP) with certification requirements from day one, we reduce the cycle of re-test and re-work.
- Maximize Test Asset Utilization: Flight test hours and range time are incredibly expensive. We ensure every minute of testing counts by enforcing strict entry criteria (readiness reviews) and rigorous ground-testing prerequisites, ensuring no expensive flight hour is wasted on a system that wasn't ready to fly.
Contact Us for RFI's or RFP
Forward Engineering, LLC kward@fwdengllc.com
