An Architecture Framework Approach for Complex Transport Projects

Abstract

Transport infrastructure systems are very complex and expensive. Projects to procure such systems are costly, long and complex to manage. The procurement context usually includes many collaborating organizations but often with different concerns and priorities, and many interactions to other parties. This makes the procurement very complex and entangled. DoDAF, MoDAF and TRAK are three architecture frameworks (AF) that model the whole enterprise/system life cycle that includes system procurement. They are expressed as metamodels. In this paper, we analyse various procurements strategies and identify the concerns that AFs should address. The TRAK AF is then applied to a Rail procurement case study in collaboration with Transport for New South Wales (NSW) in Australia to assess its effectiveness in meeting the procurement needs. In all stages of the study, TRAK is mapped and compared to DoDAF and MoDAF to examine whether DoDAF or MoDAF can cover the inadequacies of TRAK. This paper shows that there is a considerable number of procurement needs which are overlooked by these architecture frameworks. It proposes a metamodel driven expansion to these frameworks to improve their completeness and expressiveness.

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