19 May 03. QinetiQ has successfully completed a NGOSS (New Generation Operations Support and Software) architecture demonstration for the UK MOD. This involved the integration of legacy and state-of-the-art OSS applications in just 10 weeks, delivering two different business processes that now enable customers to both bring offerings to market faster and open up new revenue streams.
The ability to get a number of different computer systems and software suites all seamlessly operating together quickly and with the minimum amount of disruption is a key objective of any business. This groundbreaking milestone project achieves a number of world firsts. These include being the first to demonstrate a B2B gateway in a double NGOSS environment for Trouble Ticketing, seamless legacy/heterogeneity integration of low level database and Visual Basic applications with leading edge telecoms and IT OSS. Hence the project represents a major step forward in the acceptance of the TeleManagement Forum’s (TMF) NGOSS initiative.
QinetiQ is acting as project lead and the prime integrator on the NGOSS Demonstrator. Partners in the consortium include UK Ministry of Defence as sponsor plus BTexact, Fujitsu Services, Valaran Corporation and Trendium Inc.
The project’s objective was to demonstrate how an NGOSS architecture, coupled with standard business processes and COTS products, can bring together MOD Service Providers, Software Vendors and OSS Integrators to create a flexible, cost-effective, end-to-end service management infrastructure in a vastly reduced timescale. The demonstrated scenarios also delivered an end-to-end collective service view across heterogeneous networks,systems, and technologies while managing a multi-Service Provider service assurance process.
Martin Huddleston, team leader at QinetiQ, commenting on the project said: “This world leading NGOSS demonstration illustrates process coherency and guaranteed business continuity. It also offers proactive service assurance and intelligence improved customer satisfaction – achieved by collective service view – which enables the delivery of the right information to the right person. This means that by dramatically reducing the software development life-cycle, significant savings in integration and total cost of ownership can be realised, ultimately resulting in new revenue generating services being brought to market more quickly and cost effectively.”
Gavin Richardson, managing director of QinetiQ’s Information, Communications and Electronics businesses concluded: “With so many organisations heavily dependant on legacy systems, NGOSS is a real enabler and offers them the ability to move the functionality of what they already have forward, without major cost implications.”
Earlier in the month, QinetiQ achieved what it believes to be a world first with a successful ‘closed loop’ test of its phased array radar seeker sensor concept. This puts the UK at the forefront of new missile seeker technology and constitutes a major risk reduction for the next generation of surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles.
Whereas conventional radar seeker antennas are mechanically steered within the missile to maintain RF energy on the target, the phased array sensor is strapped down to the missile and electronically steers its energy. In closed loop tests, QinetiQ has demonstrated that the innovative RF phased array sensor can achieve the basic functions that are required to guide a missile successfully to its target. Further development will have to follow to achieve full seeker functionality.