SEAPORT-e
3.1 - Research and Development Support
D4 supports the development and application of scientific and analytical disciplines to conduct fundamental research; scientific study and experimentation directed toward advancing the state-of-the-art or increasing knowledge or understanding; concept formulation; assessment of system and subsystem requirements; development, analysis and evaluation of concepts, technologies, systems and subsystems; and development of operational concepts and tactics with the end goal being the application of results to developing new or improving existing warfighting capabilities.
Client requirements drive the functionality D4 must provide in technical publications. As clients' needs change, D4 develops new technologies to capture, present and interact with data via graphical interfaces in technical manuals.
In every project, an evaluation of client requirements precedes the development of new technologies to present technical data. Once defined, D4 invests research and development resources to advance the state-of-the-art in interactive intelligent graphics to provide new ways to trace electrical circuits or hydraulic diagrams, to present interactive applications in client/server environments, and to find innovative ways to leverage disparate legacy information from a variety of sources to create cohesive intelligent applications which advance warfighting capabilities.
In order to provide cost-effective solutions, D4 invests in developing technology to enhance production methods via automation. Oftentimes, advances in intelligent graphics functionality drive up cost by requiring more human intervention and decision-making in the production process to prepare data for incorporation into technical publications. Through the development of automated tools that focus the production process on the specification of an individual project, D4 is able to use less experienced personnel to structure data from legacy formats for use in intelligent applications. Automated tools have been developed to process the structured data, verifying conformance to specifications, interpreting graphical schemata, and making the linkages between graphics and data.
Since no automated process is perfect, D4 has developed interactive applications that allow production personnel to modify and correct any errors introduced via automation. These applications reside in an environment that simultaneously provides a methodical way to add structure to legacy data and flags any non-conforming structures created as artifacts of automation. Production personnel correct the flagged errors in this environment, which does not allow non-conforming structure to be created.
3.2 - Engineering, System Engineering and Process Engineering Support
D4 supports the application of engineering disciplines to technically support development of new warfighting capabilities and systems, technically support development of significant alterations to existing systems, support integration of existing equipment or software into different applications or platforms to support the warfighter, and technologies to satisfy existing warfighting requirements. D4 systematically considers the requirements, synthesizes and evaluates alternative concepts, identifies a recommended selection, and can generate a design and system specification.
Engineering support for intelligent technical publications extends beyond the research and development phase of a project. D4 personnel apply sound engineering disciplines to derive requirements from client statements of work, track development against specifications, and ensure high quality development practices are followed throughout the project. Engineering personnel consider several alternatives for each development concept, and once each is evaluated and a selection is recommended, develop designs and functional specifications, which serve as the master development roadmaps for each project.
Fundamental to the development of requirements and specifications is the understanding of each project�s data and the special needs the technical publication will address for the warfighter. Thorough understanding drives the development of the technical publication so that the application fits the data and its intended use, rather than shoehorning the data into an existing application, perhaps ill-suited for the warfighters' needs.
Complementary to the technical publications arena, D4 also supplies content that can be used by the OEM and/or the Government's In-Service Engineering Agent (ISEA) to increase understanding, readability and productivity within the design arena.
D4 SUPPORTS ENGINEERING & PBL INITIATIVES
D4's software captures 100% of the information from engineering drawings, transforms the content into a neutral file and converts it into a myriad of target formats - useful for coordination among multiple vendors. Faced with disparate sources for engineering and technical publication environments, D4 has begun to create single source engineering data repositories for lifecycle sustainment within the supply chain. Often overlooked outside of Performance-Based Logistics (PBL), the graphics can contain metadata regarding parts content and increase data reuse across disciplines.
3.5 - System Design, Documentation and Technical Data Support
D4 delivers technical documentation in the form of electronic (digital) or interactive computer systems used to support system development and maintenance that reflects the latest design, configuration, integration and installation concepts for existing Navy platforms. D4 supports the Navy's Technical Manual Maintenance Activity's (TMMA) role in managing and evolving technical data for the warfighter. In addition to many others, D4 has provided these types of services in Zone 7 to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center - Keyport for the past seven years.
3.6 - Software Engineering, Development, Programming, and Network Support
The Software Development Lifecycle model employed is best described as "Rapid Prototyping in the Waterfall" model. Through each phase of the software development lifecycle the development and QA teams work together to ensure that the best software engineering practices are utilized.
The classic Waterfall method of software development is often criticized for being too rigid, therefore outdated. In this method, each step must be 100% complete, accepted, and bought off before the next step may begin. This method is intended to remove all design flaws at the beginning of a project, thereby eliminating costly design changes once a project is in full swing. The fatal flaw of this process is that it is nearly impossible to identify all of the flaws in the design in the earliest stages, especially for projects requiring extensive research.
D4 employs a modified Waterfall method that begins and ends with the client and several feedback cycles that ensure that as requirements become more fully understood, they are incorporated into the development. The development culminates in a prototype, which provides full functionality for a representative subset of all data.
3.11 - Quality Assurance (QA) Support
D4 has made Quality Assurance (QA) an integral part of its software development methodology. Application of QA standards and guidelines are an integral part of the company's ongoing software process improvement program.
D4 applies engineering and analytical disciplines to ensure that the processes and products used in the design, development, fabrication, manufacture of result in quality products.
D4 develops a Quality Assurance and Control Plan (QAP) that will apply to the entire lifecycle of a project. The QAP will specify the plan, methods, procedures and controls to be used to ensure the product quality and fulfillment of contract requirements through all phases of the contract. This plan describes the methodology employed by D4 and its subcontractors to ensure that all quality requirements relating to the contract are met. The QAP is a living document that evolves and grows throughout each project.
D4 has provided QA Support to Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Division Keyport through a teaming relationship with Raytheon. In this role, D4 developed an iterative process for detection and correction of transformed data that was misinterpreted by automated processes. By developing an end-to-end process that included accuracy review and approval, D4 was able to guarantee delivery of transformed data within the desired performance metric.
D4 has made testing an integral part of its software development methodology. D4 develops a Testing Plan (TP) that will apply to the lifecycle and maintenance of each project. The TP will specify the plan, methods, procedures and controls to be used to verify and validate the product quality and ensure fulfillment of contract requirements during the period of performance.
The TP is developed using an iterative process that begins with the review of the Functional and Design Specifications. A QA Engineer working in parallel with "buddy" developers during the implementation phase adds credibility and detail to the TP. D4 employs the "buddy" system approach within its development environment. Each developer is partnered with QA personnel. Software developers provide input to the QA personnel who build test cases that directly apply to the project's functionality. Knowledge of the implementation strategy and the resulting code facilitates the development of automated functionality test suites early in the development cycle.
3.16 - Acquisition Logistics Support
D4 understands that the principal objectives of acquisition logistics are to ensure that support considerations are an integral part of the system's design requirements, can be cost effectively supported through its life-cycle, and the infrastructure elements necessary to the initial fielding and operational support of the system are identified and developed and acquired.
Through its processes, tools and software, D4 applies the engineering and analytical disciplines required to design, develop, test, produce, field, sustain and improve modifications of cost effective systems that achieve the warfighters' peacetime and wartime readiness requirements.
For the Trident Training Facility (TTF) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), D4 has applied engineering and analytical disciplines required to ensure that the warfighter and technical support community is provided with adequate instruction including applied exercises resulting in the attainment and retention of knowledge, skills, and attitudes regarding the platforms, systems, and warfighting capabilities they operate and maintain.
D4 developed and delivered training aids, books and computer-based training (CBT) materials to support these goals. Using its own intelligent graphics viewer and vector graphics, clients have been able to use D4's deliverables for both the maintenance and sustainment of its systems and equipment as well as for training new maintainers and logisticians on those systems.
D4 also has conducted hands-on training courses both onsite and at the client site, which has provided detailed instruction in the maintenance and operation of its deliverables. Included in this course was theory of operation of the manual as well as the following maintenance procedures:
- Table of contents generation
- Graphics maintenance, including:
- Update
- New graphics insertion
- Graphics deletion
- Merging graphics
- Splitting graphics
- Data Module population
- ETM publishing
- Configuration management
Representatives from the D4 team will be involved at different stages during the training dependent on the expertise and subject matter being covered.