Challenges and Opportunities in Introducing Systems Engineering Process and Tools in Traditionally Hydraulic Industry

The machinery sector is going through a paradigm shift towards autonomous operations and connectivity to develop services like predictive maintenance and remote operations. This poses the need for new methods and tools to ensure safety, security and regulatory compliance in addition to reducing lead-time for new products and services. Despite the known benefits of systems engineering and available tool support, their adoption is a challenging task for the machinery industry. This is especially true for traditionally hydraulic industry (THI) such as manufacturers of load handling equipment like loader cranes mounted on trucks. This paper presents experiences introducing new methods and tools at a THI. Specifically, it discusses technical and management challenges introducing systems engineering concepts at a load handling equipment manufacturer. This includes but is not limited to relationship between tool maturity and competence development. In addition, research opportunities related to functional safety identified during international standardization activities are also discussed. For example, the limitations of EN ISO 13849 and EN 62061 (the safety standards for machinery) related to autonomous operations and opportunities for research, and development of tools to support specified processes and their variations are discussed.