Forging a Good Working Relationship With Your Systems Integrator

In today’s fast-paced economy, reducing the time to market no longer is a topic for discussion. It’s a necessity. Companies, both large and small, are focusing engineering resources on their core competencies, leaving little time to develop expertise in test-system design. This trend has opened the door for a proliferation of test-system integrators—all vying for the opportunity to provide services to fill this growing need.

The decision to use a systems integrator has become a simple one. But selecting the right company and having a test system developed that meets your expectations are not so easy. All too often, important factors are not addressed during the selection process or the development cycle, resulting in an unsatisfactory test system and a bad experience for both you and the systems integrator.

Although many systems integrators provide choices beyond the traditional test-industry giants, this situation has created a challenge for ATE customers. Today, you must distinguish between a simple rack-and-stack supplier and an ATE company that provides all the value-added services required to develop an entire test system. To be successful, you must select the right systems integrator for your needs and develop a good working relationship.

Plan for Your Testing Needs

Even though systems integrators have substantial knowledge and experience in test and instrumentation, as the customer, you need to prepare some basic information to make the process productive.

Discuss a Design Philosophy

In the development cycle of a test system, establish key components of the design philosophy at a very early stage. In your discussions with a systems integrator, emphasize your company’s test environment. Ask yourself what is the most important criteria for the test system to successfully integrate the test functions with the rest of the manufacturing cycle.

Will you require a high level of flexibility to handle a large mix of product types, or will your production volumes dictate high-speed, dedicated test systems? A systems integrator may design a dedicated test system with a much different approach than if he were developing a multiproduct, general-purpose test system.

Another important factor in the design philosophy is an accurate evaluation of the skills of the technicians and operators who will use the test system on a daily basis. The level of automation required for an experienced technician and the level of a go, no-go operator are vastly different. The outcome of this evaluation will have a profound impact on the throughput of the test system on the production floor.

Prepare Product/Test Information

Sometimes, developing a test specification for your product can be lengthy, and your internal schedule may not allow for this task. A systems integrator can work as an extension of your technical staff or take full responsibility for the complete test-specification development. In either case, your input will be necessary.

In lieu of a test specification, the systems integrator can develop one using detailed information on the product(s) to be tested. As a minimum, you must be prepared to discuss the most critical facets of the product and provide parametric characteristics on signals. For example, the test may require the measurement of a square wave output with an amplitude of 12 V peak to peak +0.5%, a frequency of 1.2 kHz +1%, and a duty cycle of 20%.

A theory of operation or a description of the functionality of the product can greatly assist the systems integrator in designing and developing a test specification. This may provide important information that helps ensure the test system will have the necessary instrumentation resources to fully exercise all the capabilities of your product.

Get Engineering Involved as Early as Possible

How active a role can your engineering staff take in the test-development cycle and future support of the test system? If you anticipate the systems integrator taking the lead role in evaluating the test requirements, determining the test-system resources, and providing a complete turnkey solution, then select a vendor with a strong technical staff. Be clear in your discussions with potential systems integrators about what level of support you require from them, and ask to discuss any of their recent projects that would represent that level of support.

Even in cases where a systems integrator takes the lead role, having a member of your engineering staff as a primary contact on the project is essential. The proper and timely analysis of technical issues is a key element to the success of the test system. The driving force behind the successful design and development of a test system is the interaction between your engineering staff and the systems integrator.

Perform an Initial Budget Analysis

Systems integrators often find that a customer’s initial budget for the test system covers instrumentation costs well, but typically overlooks other important value-added services. The additional time spent selecting or developing instrument software drivers, a test executive, diagnostic tools, or documentation is not included in the cost of development.

These hidden costs become evident in the process of outsourcing test-system development. In most cases, a thoughtful review will show that systems integrators can reduce the total system cost by using their experience to address and perform these value-added services in an efficient manner.

Review Future Requirements

Looking down the road at your potential product test requirements can sometimes offer significant savings in time and money. Providing information to the systems integrator on your future direction can influence the architecture of the test system. An increase in your test-system capabilities now may represent only a small increase in the system cost as compared to a retrofit six months later.

Think About the Software

If you intend to have the systems integrator develop the application programs for your test system, devote time to describing the desired software capabilities. Here again, the systems integrator’s experience can provide a complete development environment, allowing you to concentrate solely on the application code.

It is crucial that you think about the user interface to the test system. How will your test operators and technicians interact with the system? If the test-system software is not user friendly, the effectiveness of the entire test process is hindered. If you wish to display test results to the operator, describe the level of detail to be included and what format would be the most useful for the data.

In reviewing your product tests, think about the logical sequencing of these tests. Will the test executive need the capability to run each test step individually as well as in a sequence? What types of diagnostic tools are available to isolate failures? How will failures be reported to the operator, and will this data be kept on the system computer, your internal network resources, or hard-copy printout?

Select the Right Systems Integrator

Armed with this information, systems integrators can provide you with a proposal for the test system. Stress a high level of detail in the proposal stage to avoid ambiguities in the services to be provided or capabilities of the test system itself. If the systems integrator is to take full responsibility for developing a complete solution, review the proposals on several levels.

Most importantly, are all the technical requirements being met, and are they delineated in enough detail to convince you that sufficient forethought was given to the test-system design? Not only must this include the instrumentation selection, but also the test-system interconnection and the interface to your product. Have critical measurements or signal paths been accounted for to ensure the proper accuracy and tolerances during test?

Does the test system provide a software development environment for rapid test-program development? Software components such as a test executive, a diagnostic tool set, datalogging and reporting functions, and the user interface should be described.

Is the process of the test-system development cycle defined? A clue to the experience level of a potential supplier is the description of the program plan and processes to ensure that the test system meets all technical, schedule, and cost requirements.

What support services does the company offer? Often, on-site training and application support are critical to the success of your project. Review the supplier’s maintenance programs and available service contracts. Will a self-test program be provided to verify the operation of the test system to the prescribed specification?

What level of documentation is provided for the test system? Proper documentation is key to the use and maintenance of the test system. If there is a large percentage of propriety hardware or software in the system, how will they be maintained? Can an alternate solution be provided with commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment?

Do the systems integrator’s strengths and experience match your needs? Related experience in your specific field is important; however, it is not critical. You are the expert on your product, and the systems integrator must have the capability to apply the test and measurement experience to your application.

Is geographic proximity an important factor to you? If your current product line is in a state of flux and the systems integrator must work through the process of change concurrently with the design of the test system, how will he support this effort? Is there a local support office, or will all technical support come from a main location?

Escape Some Pitfalls

Avoid using proprietary components whenever possible. A test system using a closed architecture will lack flexibility and generally is expensive or impossible to upgrade. No single manufacturer can provide all of the ideal components comprising a complex test system, and you may get expensive instruments and software you don’t need. The best solution will provide an open architecture and use COTS equipment to ensure the test system has the flexibility to adapt to your future applications.

Avoid the one-of-a-kind test system. Discuss the details of previous test systems designed by the integrator. You may find that the systems integrator with the lower initial price does not deliver complete test systems or lacks the resources to provide full support services and documentation. The hardware and software elements must be fully engineered and unified into a mature system based on a modular, flexible design philosophy.

Open-ended or vague acceptance criteria often lead to prolonged test-system installations or, even worse, last-minute redesigns. Make sure that the systems integrator has fully addressed the acceptance test procedures for the system and that your engineering staff agrees with the process. Witness all possible acceptance testing at the integrator’s facility so the test system delivered to you is ready to use.

Conclusion

The initial stages of definition are key to the development of a beneficial working relationship with a systems integrator. Plan regularly scheduled meetings or teleconferences, and allow the systems integrator access to the engineers with the necessary technical knowledge to help make the process a success. By providing an open exchange of ideas and concepts, you will cultivate a comfort level between the systems integrator and your technical staff. This relationship will aid in a smooth development cycle and, ultimately, the delivery of the optimal test system to meet your requirements.

About the Author

Pat Cupo is a senior systems engineer at Instrumentation Engineering. He has spent more than 10 years in the test industry designing and implementing functional test systems for military and commercial applications. Mr. Cupo earned a bachelor’s of engineering degree from Stevens Institute of Technology. Instrumentation Engineering, 415 Hamburg Turnpike, Wayne, NJ 07470, (973) 389-0801, e-mail: [email protected].