An Austere Digital Engineering Approach for Energy Decarbonisation

Mark Unewisse presented at the Systems Engineering Test & Evaluation (SETE) 2024 in Melbourne today. His paper was titled ‘An Austere Digital Engineering Approach for Energy Decarbonisation’, co-authored by Stephen Cook, John Wharington, Duane Jusaitis and Ashok Samalam.

Digital Engineering is an active area of research in systems engineering. Their paper explores the application of digital engineering to complex, large-scale energy decarbonisation projects.

Energy decarbonisation projects are highly diverse in nature, spanning multiple industries, such as: energy generation, transportation, and mining. A Digital Engineering approach that combines systems engineering design and analysis, supported by analytical modelling and simulation, can be used to effectively understand, design, and deliver these often complex projects.

These types of projects, however, can become highly resource intensive, so the paper addresses this through a flexible, cost-effective approach that utilises a modular combination of model-based systems engineering, analytical modelling, and operations research techniques to analyse a range of energy decarbonisation projects.

The paper describes how lessons from defence Mission Engineering can be used to address these system-of-systems aspects and shape the modular Digital Engineering approach. It also outlines some examples from the mining industry and green energy generation to illustrate this modular Digital Engineering approach.

Download the paper: SETE 2024 – Unewisse Cook et al Austere DE Approach for Energy Decarbonisation – paper

Download the presentation: SETE 2024 – Unewisse Cook et. al – presentation

SETE 2024 is the premier conference for the systems engineering profession in Australia, run by the Systems Engineering Society of Australia (SESA), the Southern Cross Chapter of the International Test and Evaluation Association (ITEA) and, collaborative partner, Simulation Australasia (SimAust).

The Shoal Group team presented six papers at SETE 2024. The papers addressed topics aligning with Model-based Systems Engineering and its relationship to research and development, engineering workforce management, mission engineering, business strategy and digital engineering. They covered a mix of systems engineering applications across domains, with above and below the line papers relating to Defence, and Energy sectors.