NASA Procedural Requirements

NPR 7123.1D Effective Date: July 05, 2023 Expiration Date: July 05, 2028

Subject: NASA Systems Engineering Processes and Requirements Updated w/Change 2

Responsible Office: Office of the Chief Engineer

Chapter 6. Systems Engineering Management Plan

6.1 Systems Engineering Management Plan Function

6.1.1 A SEMP is used to establish the technical content of the engineering work early in the Formulation phase for each program/project and updated as needed throughout the program/project life cycle. The resulting technical plan represents the agreed to and approved tailoring of the requirements of this NPR and the customizing of SE practices to satisfy program/project technical requirements.

6.1.1.1 The SEMP provides the specifics of the technical effort and describes what common technical processes will be used, how the processes will be applied using appropriate activities, how the program/project will be organized to accomplish the activities, and the technical resources required (including cost, schedule, and personnel) for accomplishing the activities. The process activities are driven by the critical events during any phase of a life cycle (including operations) that set the objectives and work product outputs of the processes and how the processes are integrated. (See Appendix J of NASA/SP-6105 for a suggested annotated outline for the SEMP.)

6.1.1.2 The SEMP provides the communication bridge between the program/project management team and the executing technical team. It also facilitates effective communication within the technical team.

6.1.1.3 The SEMP provides the framework to realize the appropriate work products of the applicable program/project life-cycle phases to provide management with necessary information for assessing technical progress.

6.1.1.4 The SEMP may be a stand-alone document or may be included as sections within other documentation such as the program or project plan.

6.1.1.5 The SEMP provides the basis for implementing the technical effort and communicating what will be done and by whom, when, where, how, and why it is being done including any applicable constraints on the implementation. In addition, the SEMP identifies the roles and responsibility interfaces of the technical effort and how those interfaces will be managed.

6.1.1.6 The SEMP is the vehicle that documents and communicates the technical approach, including the application of the common technical processes; resources to be used; and key technical tasks, activities, and events along with their metrics and success criteria. The SEMP communicates the technical effort that will be performed by the assigned technical team to the team itself, managers, customers, and other stakeholders.

6.1.1.7 The SEMP is a living document that captures a program/project's current and evolving SE strategy and its relationship with the overall program/project management effort throughout the life cycle of the system. Whereas the primary focus is on the current and upcoming phase in which the technical effort will be done, the planning extends to a summary of the technical efforts that are planned for future phases. The SEMP's purpose is to guide all technical aspects of the program/project.

6.1.2 The SEMP is consistent with higher level SEMPs and the Program/Project Plan, allowing for tailoring and customization. For example, a Project level SEMP would be consistent with the Program level SEMP and the Project Plan.

6.1.3 The content of a SEMP for an in-house technical effort may differ from an external technical effort. For an external technical effort, the NASA SEMP should include details on developing requirements for source selection, monitoring performance, and transferring and integrating externally produced products to NASA. (See Appendix J of NASA/SP-6105 for further details.)

6.1.4 The NASA SEMP also provides the basis for determining the required contractor's documentation specifying their SE approach to the scope of activities described by the 17 common technical processes (See Section 4.2.3).

6.1.5 The ETA shall approve the SEMP, waiver or deviation authorizations, and other key technical documents to ensure independent assessment of technical content [SE-06].

6.2 Technical Team Responsibilities

6.2.1 Working with the Program/Project Manager, the technical team under the guidance of the ETA determines the appropriate level within the system structure at which SEMPs are to be developed, taking into account factors such as number and complexity of interfaces, operating environments, and risk factors.

6.2.2 The technical team establishes the initial SEMP early in the Formulation phase and updates it as necessary to reflect changes in scope or improved technical development. The technical team will have their approaches approved through the ETA process. As changes occur, the SEMP will be updated by the technical team, reviewed and reapproved by both the ETA and the program/project manager, and presented at subsequent life-cycle reviews or their equivalent. The SEMP is updated at major life-cycle reviews through the SIR.

6.2.3 The technical teams shall define in the program/project SEMP how the required 17 common technical processes, as tailored, will be recursively applied to the various levels of program/project product layer system structure during each applicable life-cycle phase [SE-58].

6.2.4 The technical team baselines the SEMP per the Center's procedures and the governing PM policy. (For example, for spaceflight projects under NPR 7120.5, it is baselined at SRR for projects and single-project programs and SDR for loosely coupled programs, tightly coupled programs, and uncoupled programs). The content of Appendix J of NASA/SP-6105 should be used as a guide for producing the work product. For small projects, the SEMP material can be incorporated in the Project Plan provided the ETA approves the SEMP material.

6.2.5 The technical team shall ensure that any technical plans and discipline plans are consistent with the SEMP (or equivalent program/project documentation) and are accomplished as fully integrated parts of the technical effort [SE-59].

6.2.6 The technical team shall establish TPMs for the program/project that track/describe the current state versus plan [SE-60]. These measures are typically described in the SEMP per Appendix J of NASA/SP-6105 guide.

6.2.7 The technical team shall report the TPMs to the Program/Project Manager on an agreed-to reporting interval [SE-61].

6.2.8 A technical leading indicator is a subset of the TPMs that provides insight into the potential future states. The technical team shall ensure that the set of TPMs include the following leading indicators:

a. Mass margins for projects involving hardware [SE-62].

b. Power margins for projects that are powered [SE-63].

6.2.9 The technical team shall ensure that a set of review trends is created and maintained that includes closure of review action documentation (RIDs, RFAs, and/or Action Items as established by the project) [SE-64].

DISTRIBUTION:
NODIS

This document does not bind the public, except as authorized by law or as incorporated into a contract. This document is uncontrolled when printed. Check the NASA Online Directives Information System (NODIS) Library to verify that this is the correct version before use: https://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov.