TRAK is a Finalist in the 2011 IET Innovation Awards

TRAK is a finalist in the 2011 IET Innovation Awards. As the IET say:

The IET Achievement Awards recognise the exceptional achievements of individuals working in the engineering and technology profession, from the well-known scientist to the fledgling engineer.

It was judged under the IET’s Asset Management category. It wasn’t easy to submit since it didn’t easily fit any of the categories against which judging was to be made. This is an all-too typical problem for systems engineering itself, for example under which subject category in a bookshop do you look for systems engineering books?

The IET’s judging criteria for the Asset Management category is:

The judges will look for originality and will place significant emphasis on the contribution made to whole life asset management, risk management and the impact on business performance.  Other factors include progress with implementation, integration into the business and the contribution to asset knowledge.

Last Friday (23rd September) the response came back:

I am delighted to inform you that your entry “TRAK - An Open Source Enterprise Architecture Framework”, reference 0383 has been selected as a finalist for the Asset Management category of the IET Innovation Awards 2011.

It was extremely competitive, with over 400 entries to the awards, but the judges felt that your innovation was amongst the best.

The finalists are listed on the IET Innovation Awards website.

Awards will be announced on 9th November at the Intercontinental Hotel in London.

The IET Innovation Awards 2011 will be hosted by Robert Llewellyn, actor, writer and presenter best known for playing the role of ‘Kryten’ in the hit science fiction sitcom Red Dwarf.

We’ve always thought of TRAK as innovative not just in the product and its definition but in the approach and how it is managed. It’s nice to know that people that are independent think this as well!

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External Links

• IET Achievement Awards
• IET Innovation Awards website - Finalists

TRAK Receives an INCOSE 2010 Working Group Award

TRAK benefits from a lot of effort put in by a group of people who do this because they believe in it and have the motivation to get stuck in. A lot of this is invisible behind the scenes work and it is all unpaid. I can’t deny that it is nice, however, when this effort is recognised. It was therefore a pleasant surprise when an email popped up with a screenshot of an INCOSE working group award.

To put this in some context, INCOSE state:

The Working Group Awards and Recognition Program rewards efforts and achievements by individual or multiple Working Groups in support of INCOSE’s mission. By focusing on the Working Groups, it specifically recognises team effort. It does not replace existing awards, such as Service Awards.

All Working Groups that have approved charters under Technical Operations are eligible to receive awards under the Working Group Awards and Recognition Program. Not all awards are awarded every year. The Awards recognise exemplary Working Group activities in specific areas:

and it is in the following context that TRAK received the award:

Achieving the Systems Engineering Vision award is presented to the Working Group that has made the most significant contribution toward achieving the Systems Engineering Vision 2020.

Kuldeep, Colin and I received the award on behalf of TRAK at a Railway Interest Group (RIG) meeting in London, collecting it from the president-elect of INCOSE, John Thomas on his recent trip to the UK.

Presentation of INCOSE 2010 Working Group Award to TRAK by John Thomas (president elect for INCOSE) at LU Headquarters. (Photograph © London Underground Ltd 2011)

TRAK has always been about more than just the definition of a general purpose enterprise architecture framework - it’s as much about how it’s released and managed and maintained throughout its life and the interface and dynamics presented to users in doing so. We try hard to do this using in the way that you’d specify and manage any system so it’s doubly-nice to get recognition from the professional body that represents systems engineering.

The keener eyed will spot some advice being given from the INCOSE UK Architecture Working Group via feature and bug requests at the Sourceforge sites through which TRAK is released. I should stress that we’re always keen to encourage input and interaction from anyone - you don’t have to be part of a company or large organisation.

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External Links

• INCOSE Working Group Award
• INCOSE Leadership Directory