Applying CMMI and Strategy to ATE Development

This paper provides a viewpoint of the capability maturity model integration (CMMI^SM ) from the perspective of automated test equipment (ATE) development and test engineering. ATE development is a specialized segment of product development and shares many of the same issues. Requirements for the test equipment are very dependent on continually evolving product characteristics. Even with the best planning, lead times for ATE development are typically eroded by late changes to product requirements and designs, and eventually the critical path leads right through test! Without a solid process foundation, chaos ensues. The CMMI process models provide a framework for the integration of best practices in many disciplines. Portions of the systems engineering, software engineering, Integrated Product and Process Development and Supplier Sourcing models all offer important perspectives which affect ATE developers. This paper focuses on the CMMI processes and best practices which yield the greatest impact to test organizations and groups that provide ATE. The overall Test Strategy should help prioritize the process areas which deserve the most attention. Mature ATE organizations use a Balanced Scorecard approach to provide alignment with corporate and program level goals. Metrics monitor their progress against their corporate goals. At the program level, they apply a risk- driven approach to selectively apply resources that achieve the highest ROI for test dollars. From this business-oriented vantage point, organizations are likely to see increased efficiencies that will decrease overall system development costs by streamlining the testing component of their budgets.