Technology Assessment
Engineered systems and their component parts must be technically viable if they are to be deployed. ESG staff routinely assess systems, their components and alternate components to determine overall technical viability, both during the design and planning phases as well as after systems have been deployed. Key factors include:
- Effectiveness – Will the system and its component parts do what it is designed to do?
- Efficiency – Are the resources needed to run the system (or component) reasonable, or are they too high to justify on cost/benefit basis?
- Adaptability – How robust is the engineered system with respect to variability of its operating environment and the ability to meet changing needs? Can the system be applied to other environments?
- Insertion – Can the system or component effectively interface with other systems or components in the target operating environment?
- Operability – Will the system or component be easy to operate, maintain, and repair?
- Impacts – When operating, will the system or component generate undesirable impacts (e.g., environmental or safety impacts, nuisance impacts such as noise, degraded performance of related systems)?