25 Sep 2003
BAE Systems Avionics Limited and Avionic Systems have announced that they have achieved a Maturity rating of CMM Level Five, the highest possible based on the Software Capability Maturity Model (CMM) as defined by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI). The announcement follows an assessment which was performed on 19 September 2003 by an independent team from CSC's UK Software Development Organisation, who are themselves accredited to CMM Level 5.
"This assessment was the culmination of many years of co-ordinated work across the organisation," said Melvin Simpson, Engineering & Project Management Director for BAE Systems Avionics. "A key element was the One Company approach we have applied to software and engineering, not least of which is a single common set of processes and metrics across all of our software development activities. The Software CMM has become a de facto standard for assessing and improving software processes and we are delighted to have attained Level 5."
The scope of the assessment included all 8 UK sites of the two businesses, covering more than 100 projects and over 750 software engineers.
CSC conducted the assessment and evaluated performance against the SEI's Software Capability Maturity Model using the Software Capability Evaluation (SCE) approach. The assessment recognised the organisation as an industry leader in software development, with many examples of best practice being recognised. All projects evaluated, clearly demonstrated Level 5 capability and exhibited outstanding discipline in applying the practices through the software development process.
"The SCE approach undertaken for the assessment aligns very closely with that we propose to use for future assessments, including the next generation of the SEI's model known as CMMI", Simpson said. "The business is actively extending its improvement activities into other project and engineering disciplines by utilising the CMMI as the benchmark of performance. The SCE was performed as a pilot and risk reduction for this approach."
"Achieving Level 5 over such a large multi-divisional organisation is a great accomplishment, but the real benefit has been the performance improvements we have seen in schedule and productivity whilst using the CMM Model as the framework for software improvement. "
About BAE SYSTEMS:
BAE Systems is an international company engaged in the development, delivery and support of advanced defence and aerospace systems in the air, on land, at sea and in space.
The company designs, manufactures and supports military aircraft, surface ships, submarines, radar, avionics, communications, electronics and guided weapon systems. It is a pioneer in technology with a heritage stretching back hundreds of years. It is at the forefront of innovation, working to develop the next generation of intelligent defence systems. BAE Systems has major operations across five continents and customers in some 130 countries. The company has more than 90,000 people and generates annual sales of approximately 12 billion through its wholly-owned and joint venture operations. BAE Systems, innovating for a safer world.
About Avionics Group:
BAE Systems Avionics is the leading avionics company in Europe, and the UK's foremost supplier of electronic systems for civil and military platforms in the air, at sea and on land. With its head office at Basildon in the UK, the Avionics organisation operates across 30 sites in four continents, with concentrations in Scotland, southern England and Australia. The Group employs 6,000 people around the world with 4,900 of these employed in the UK.
About BAE SYSTEMS Avionic Systems:
BAE Systems Avionic Systems is a leading supplier of avionic displays, flight controls, and associated subsystems across both the civil and military aviation sectors. Its products and expertise are critical to the operation of high-capability manned aircraft and to the remote operation of unmanned aerial vehicles. The business operates facilities in Rochester, Kent, and Edinburgh, Scotland. Avionic Systems is a unit of BAE Systems North America, a high-technology U.S. company employing more than 25,000 people who live and work in some 30 states, the District of Columbia, and the United Kingdom. The company is dedicated to solving its customers' needs with highly innovative and leading-edge solutions across the defence electronics, systems, information technology, and services arenas. Several BAE Systems businesses in the U.S. have also achieved SEI CMM accreditation. Nearly 70 percent of software engineers in the company's North America unit are operating at CMM Level 4 or higher.
About CSC:
Founded in 1959, Computer Sciences Corporation is a leading global IT services company. CSC's mission is to provide customers in industry and government with solutions crafted to meet their specific challenges and enable them to profit from the advanced use of technology. With approximately 92,000 employees, CSC provides innovative solutions for customers around the world by applying leading technologies and CSC's own advanced capabilities. These include systems design and integration; IT and business process outsourcing; applications software development; Web and application hosting; and management consulting. Headquartered in El Segundo, Calif., CSC reported revenue of $12.1 billion for the 12 months ended July 4, 2003. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.csc.com.
About the SEI and CMM
The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) is a federally funded research and development centre sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology [OUSD (A&T)]. The SEI contract was competitively awarded to Carnegie Mellon University in December 1984. Technical and administrative professionals from government, industry and academia staff the Institute
The SEI created the CMM as a guide for systematically implementing development practices that continuously improve software quality.
The Capability Maturity Model is a proven methodology, developed under the auspices of the Department of Defense at Carnegie Mellon University.
It enables applications development teams to grade the level of maturity of their organisation and its processes.
The Capability Maturity Model outlines five levels of maturity for applications development organisations and processes: Ad Hoc, Repeatable, Defined, Managed, and Optimising. The Capability Maturity Model specifies the characteristics of each level. A Level 5 rating means that a company has reached a level of maturity in which its employees can control the process performance of their software projects, achieve specific quality goals because of their ability to measure processes and operate within quantitative limits, while at the same time maintaining a focus on continuous process improvement.
CMM, Capability Maturity Model and Capability Maturity Modelling are registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
