This training course on Software Product Assurance will take place at ESA/ESTEC (Noordwijk, NL) on 11 March 2025 (09:00 - 18:00 CET). It is an on-site course, remote participation will not be possible.

Product Assurance (PA) is the discipline devoted to the study, planning and implementation of activities intended to assure that the design, controls, methods and techniques in a project result in a satisfactory degree of quality in a product.

This 1-day session aims at providing participants with an overview of the Software Product Assurance tasks to be performed throughout a project. It introduces aspects of a Software Product Assurance programme and how Software PA is implemented in projects.

ESA Software Product Assurance experts will guide attendees through four main sessions:

1.    Software in the Context of Space Projects

2.    Software Product Assurance Organisational Aspects / Software RAMS

3.    Product Assurance in the Software Life Cycle / Software Product Assurance challenges

4.    Software Product Assurance Across Processes

Practical exercises will complement the session.

Target Group

This course is of particular interest to SMEs which have the intention to develop software for ESA or in the space context. It is targeted at participants working for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in ESA Member States, Associate States or Cooperating States.

Although no previous software experience is required, it is recommended to have some background in Software Engineering

The main objectives of the course are to:

• create an understanding of the importance of software PA for space activities
• learn about the importance of software in the system
• learn about software in the space project lifecycle and reviews
• understand the main aspects of a software PA programme
• learn about software RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability, safety) activities
• learn about the handling of critical software
• learn about PA in the software life cycle
• understand software PA challenges
• get introduced to aspects of software process assessment and improvement

A maximum of 2 participants per company can be admitted. There are 40 seats available. Preference will be given to participants from Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. Please provide your esa-star entity code upon registration.

The course is free of charge. Participants are expected to cover their own travel, meal and accomodation costs.

Morning session

Block 1 - Software in the Context of Space Projects

• Introduction
• Software in the space project life cycle
• Space vs ground environment
• Software life-cycle & reviews

Block 2 - Software Product Assurance Organisational Aspects / Software RAMS

• Main aspects of a Software PA programme
• Software Assessment and Improvement
• Software RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability, safety) activities

Afternoon session

Block 3 – Product Assurance in the Software Life Cycle / Software PA challenges

• Software engineering related processes and PA
  • System Requirements for Software
  • Software Requirements for Analysis
  • Software Design
  • Software Coding
  • Testing
  • Software Validation
  • Verification
  • Software Acceptance
• Operations
• Maintenance
• Reuse of Existing Software
• Software PA Challenges

Block 4 - Software Product Assurance Across Processes

• Software Quality Requirements
• Software Process Assessment and Improvement
• Approach for very small entities
• Cybersecurity
• Configuration Management
• Non-conformances
• Alerts
• Recap and take-home message

The agenda is subject to change.

Software Product Assurance Section, Directorate of Technology, Engineering & Quality

Please inform the organisers at your earliest convenience if you cannot take part in the course by sending an email to: sme-office@esa.int

No-shows on the day will be excluded from future courses and events.