1. June 28, 2015 1 Conceptualizing large complex engineering systems as socio- technical systems Presentation Stockholm Maarten Ottens Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management

2. June 28, 20152 I.Introduction II.Approach III.Results IV.Problems

3. June 28, 20153 Why the interest in systems Engineers design increasingly complex systems. Increasing in amount of elements and in sorts of elements and operation possible between these elements, etcetera. Already complex systems are coupled, leading to large-scale complex systems, like energy systems, telecommunication, transport systems. These systems fail due to non-technical causes, organizational failure, legal failure. I

4. June 28, 20154 Socio-technical? We argue that these systems can better be understood using the concept of socio-technical systems: A system where next to technical elements, social elements are essential for the functioning of the system as it is. I

5. June 28, 20155 The research 1.understanding What are socio-technical systems? 2.modelling How can socio-technical systems be modelled? 3.designing (How) can socio-technical systems be designed? II

6. June 28, 20156 1. understanding Existing concepts/theories + Case studies -> Conceptual analysis <- Feedback II

7. June 28, 20157 Existing concepts/theories Social sciences : Actor-Network Theory, descriptive, Callon, Latour All elements are taken as intentional beings. Physics : Complex Systems Theory, predictive Nonlinear dynamics, modelling systems by modelling the elements with simple rules and interacting Engineering sciences : Systems Engineering, prescriptive All elements as rational, logic, within laws of physics and logic II

8. June 28, 20158 start: Systems Engineering Conceptual mess, ambiguous, unclear but, Prescriptive, and actually used by engineers when designing products Engineers are our audience, we do ‘engineering’ philosophy III

9. June 28, 20159 Research focus Terminology: what is Systems Engineering, kinds of complexity Constituents: technical, social, products, processes, agents (human/software), relations operations Boundaries: what to include, what to exclude III

10. June 28, 201510 Terminology Systems engineering Synchronic system view, complexity in amount of elements, sorts of elements and relations Diachronic system view, complexity in phases in design approach, e.g. life-cycle design III

11. June 28, 201511 agent technical element social element Constituents III

12. June 28, 201512 agent technical element social element physicalabstract IV

13. June 28, 201513 agent technical element social element intentional no intentions Designers, users Designed, used IV

14. June 28, 201514 Conceptual problems with model and constituents Are organizations (legal) agents or social elements Can legal, economical, organizational, conventional elements be modeled as one element or are they conceptually too different, compare mechanical, electrical, pneumatic elements. 3 kinds of elements -> 6 possible relations -> 4 kinds of relations IV

15. June 28, 201515 Constituents: relations Kinds of relations technical-technicalphysicalfunctional technical-agentphysicalfunctionalintentional agent-agentphysicalfunctionalintentional agent-socialfunctionalintentionalnormative social-socialfunctionalnormative social-technicalfunctionalnormative IV

16. June 28, 201516 Boundaries Where does it begin, and where does it end, conceptually and physically speaking? Modal constraints Functional, physical, legal,.. log leg nom IV

17. June 28, 201517 Engineering ‹—› Philosophy Philosophical clarification of engineering concepts Methodological problems/questions in engineering (e.g., complexity, systems) Engineers work with philosophically problematic notions (e.g., what is the ontological status of infrastructural objects?)