NOAA

National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS)

![](media/image1.png){width="1.988888888888889in"
height="1.9902777777777778in"}

Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System (CLASS)

Master Project Management Plan

**CLASS-1028-CLS-PLN-MPMP**

March 15, 2005

# Revisions {#revisions .Contents}

  ------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Version   Description of Version                          Date Completed
  --------- ----------------------------------------------- --------------
  0.1       Initial draft                                   8/12/02

  0.2       Incorporated Tino and QA comments               9/9/02

  0.3       Incorporated CPMT comments                      11/08/02

  1.0       Approved by CPMT on 12/03 -- removed "draft"    12/10/02

  1.1       Update                                          4/21/03

  1.2       Incorporated QA review comments -- approved by  8/12/03
            Tino                                            

  1.3       Incorporated Richard Reynolds comments -- new   8/24/03
            organization                                    

  1.4       Updated WBS for FY04                            10/07/03

  1.5       Incorporated SEPG review comments               10/15/03

  1.6       Incorporated SEPG review comments               09/30/04

  1.7       Updated to clarify planning, acquisition,       01/17/05
            stakeholder involvement, measurements, and      
            risk/action tracking.                           

  1.8       Included review comments from Scott McCormick.  03/09/05

  2.0       Updated comments showing approval from CPMT.    03/15/05
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------

[]{.mark}

# Review & Approval {#review-approval .Contents}

Project Plan Review History

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Reviewer             Version Reviewed           Approval Date
  -------------------- -------------------------- -----------------------
  **SEPG**             1.7                        02/09/05

  **CPMT**             1.8                        03/15/05

                                                  
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

# Contents {#contents .Contents}

[Revisions i](#revisions)

[Review & Approval ii](#review-approval)

[Contents iii](#contents)

[1 Project Definition 1](#project-definition)

[1.1 Overview 1](#overview)

[1.2 Scope 2](#scope)

[1.2.1 Process 2](#process)

[1.2.2 Location/Organization 2](#locationorganization)

[1.2.3 Data 3](#data)

[1.2.4 Application 3](#application)

[1.2.5 Technology 3](#technology)

[1.3 Deliverables 4](#deliverables)

[1.4 Assumptions and Constraints 4](#assumptions-and-constraints)

[1.5 Success and Completion Criteria
5](#success-and-completion-criteria)

[1.5.1 Acceptance Criteria 5](#acceptance-criteria)

[1.5.2 Critical Success Factors 5](#critical-success-factors)

[1.6 Reference Materials 5](#reference-materials)

[1.7 Document Maintenance 6](#document-maintenance)

[2 Management Structure 8](#management-structure)

[2.1 Project Lifecycle 8](#project-lifecycle)

[2.2 Project Organization 9](#project-organization)

[2.2.1 Project Roles and Responsibilities
9](#project-roles-and-responsibilities)

[2.2.2 External Interfaces 11](#external-interfaces)

[2.2.3 Internal Coordination 11](#internal-coordination)

[2.3 Communication 12](#communication)

[2.4 Risk Management 13](#risk-management)

[2.4.1 Risks 13](#risks)

[2.4.2 Issues and Action Items 13](#issues-and-action-items)

[3 Planning and Control 14](#planning-and-control)

[3.1 Estimation 14](#estimation)

[3.2 Resource Identification 14](#resource-identification)

[3.2.1 Staff 14](#staff)

[3.2.2 Time 14](#time)

[3.2.3 Materials 14](#materials)

[3.3 Resource Allocation 14](#resource-allocation)

[3.3.1 Work Breakdown Structure 14](#work-breakdown-structure)

[3.3.2 Schedule 16](#schedule)

[3.4 Tracking and Control 16](#tracking-and-control)

[3.4.1 Cost and Schedule Tracking and Control
16](#cost-and-schedule-tracking-and-control)

[3.4.2 Quality Tracking and Control 16](#quality-tracking-and-control)

[3.4.3 Functionality Tracking and Control
16](#functionality-tracking-and-control)

[3.4.4 Measurements 16](#measurements)

[3.4.5 Stakeholder Involvement 16](#stakeholder-involvement)

[4 Technical Process 18](#technical-process)

[4.1 Engineering 18](#engineering)

[4.1.1 Environment 18](#environment)

[4.1.2 Methods, Tools and Techniques 19](#methods-tools-and-techniques)

[4.1.3 Process Training 19](#process-training)

[4.2 Technology 19](#technology-1)

[4.2.1 Environment 19](#environment-1)

[4.2.2 Methods, Tools, and Techniques
20](#methods-tools-and-techniques-1)

[4.2.3 Technical Training 21](#technical-training)

[5 Supporting Plans 22](#supporting-plans)

[5.1 Configuration Management 22](#configuration-management)

[5.2 Quality Management 22](#quality-management)

[5.3 Testing 22](#testing)

[5.4 Software Development 22](#software-development)

[5.5 Operations Support 22](#operations-support)

[5.6 Team Activity Plans 22](#team-activity-plans)

[6 Definitions and Acronyms 23](#definitions-and-acronyms)

**List of Tables**

[Table 1 - CLASS Major Deliverables 4](#__RefHeading___Toc95709494)

[Table 2 - CLASS Project Management Team Voting Members
9](#__RefHeading___Toc95709495)

[Table 3 - CLASS Project Roles and Responsibilities
9](#__RefHeading___Toc95709496)

[Table 4 - CLASS Work Breakdown Structure for FY05
15](#__RefHeading___Toc95709497)

[Table 5. SEPG Members 17](#__RefHeading___Toc95709498)

[Table 6. SET Members 18](#__RefHeading___Toc95709499)

**List of Figures**

[Figure 1 - CLASS Project Organization 11](#__RefHeading___Toc95709485)

# Project Definition

This document describes the overall management approach for work to be
performed for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service
(NESDIS), on the Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System
(CLASS) project. CLASS is an evolutionary development effort that
involves several different government and contractor groups in various
geographic locations. This Master Project Management Plan (MPMP) defines
the common principles and guidelines to be followed by all participating
groups. Each group supplements this overall plan with a detailed
activity plan with specific information related to management of its
component(s) of the system. The MPMP will be reviewed at the start of
each NOAA fiscal year, and updated as necessary.

Section 1 describes the overall scope and objectives for the CLASS
project. It includes the following topics:

-   Overview -- describes the CLASS project objectives and background

-   Scope -- defines the work included in the CLASS implementation

-   Deliverables -- identifies major work products that will be
    delivered, and an overall timeline for their delivery

-   Assumptions and Constraints -- identifies the assumptions and
    constraints that underlie this plan. Changes to the assumptions or
    constraints will affect the scope, cost, and/or schedule for this
    project.

-   Success and Completion Criteria -- identifies the acceptance
    criteria for the project and the critical success factors

-   Reference Material -- refers the reader to additional material for
    more information on the CLASS project

## Overview

The CLASS project is being conducted in support of the NESDIS mission to
acquire, archive, and disseminate environmental data. NESDIS has been
acquiring this data for more than 30 years, from a variety of in situ
and remote sensing observing systems throughout the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and from a number of its partners.
NESDIS foresees significant growth in both the data volume and the user
population for this data, and has therefore initiated this effort to
evolve current technologies to meet future needs.

The long-term goal for CLASS is the stewardship of all environmental
data archived at the NOAA National Data Centers (NNDC). The initial
objective for CLASS is to support specifically the following campaigns:

-   NOAA and Department of Defense (DoD) Polar-orbiting Operational
    Environmental Satellites (POES) and Defense Meteorological Satellite
    Program (DMSP)

-   NOAA Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES)

-   National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Earth Observing
    System (EOS) Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)

-   National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System
    (NPOESS)

-   The NPOESS Preparatory Program (NPP)

-   EUMETSAT Meteorological Operational Satellite (Metop) Program

-   NOAA NEXt generation weather RADAR (NEXRAD) Program

The development of CLASS is expected to be a long-term, evolutionary
process, as current and new campaigns are incorporated into the CLASS
architecture. This master project management plan defines project
characteristics that are expected to be applicable over the life of the
project. However, as conditions change over time, this plan will be
updated as necessary to provide current and relevant project management
guidance.

## Scope

This section defines the CLASS scope in terms of both business scope
(processes, location, and organization) and technical scope (data,
applications, technology).

### Process

The goal of CLASS is to provide a single portal for access to NOAA
environmental data, some of which is stored in CLASS and some available
from other archives. The major processes required to meet this goal that
are in scope for CLASS are:

-   Ingest of environmental data from CLASS data providers

-   Extraction and recording of metadata describing the data stored in
    CLASS

-   Archiving data

-   Browse and search capability to assist users in finding data

-   Distribution of CLASS data in response to user request

-   Identification and location of environmental data that is not stored
    within CLASS, and connection with the owning system

-   Charging for data, as appropriate (see out of scope note below)

-   Operational support processes: 24x7 availability, disaster recovery,
    help desk/user support

While the capability of charging for media delivery of data is a
requirement for CLASS, the development of an e-Commerce system to
support financial transactions is out of scope. CLASS will interface
with another system, NESDIS e-commerce System (NeS), for financial
transactions; definition and implementation of the CLASS side of that
interface is in scope for this project.

### Location/Organization

CLASS is being developed and operated under the direction of the NESDIS
Office of Systems Development, having been under the direction of the
NESDIS Chief Information Officer (CIO) during the period 2001 -- 2003
(through Release 2.0).

CLASS is being developed by NOAA and contractor personnel associated
with the Office of Systems Development (OSD) at the CLASS-MD site in
Suitland, MD and at the CLASS_WV site in Fairmont, WV, the National
Climatic Data Center (NCDC) in Asheville, NC, and the National
Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) in Boulder, CO.

The operational system is currently located at the NOAA facility in
Suitland, MD, with a second operational facility at the NCDC facility in
Asheville, NC.

The project management is conducted by the CLASS Project Management Team
(CPMT), with representatives from each government and contractor team
participating in CLASS development and operations and chaired by the OSD
Project Manager. Section 2.2 describes the organizational structure for
the CLASS project.

### Data

Data stored in CLASS includes the following categories:

-   Environmental data ingested and archived by CLASS. Currently this
    includes data for each of the campaigns listed in Section 1.1, and
    certain product and in situ data

-   Descriptive data received with the environmental data, used to
    support browsing and searching the CLASS archive

-   Descriptive data maintained by CLASS to support searching for data
    maintained in other (non-CLASS) repositories

-   Operational data required to support the general operation of the
    system that is not related to environmental data (e.g., user
    information, system parameters)

### Application

A goal for CLASS is to reuse existing systems where possible. Existing
systems that have been identified as sources for CLASS functionality
include:

-   The Satellite Active Archive (SAA) system, which provided the basis
    for the CLASS Archive and Distribution function

-   The Satellite Archive Browse and Retrieval (SABR) system

-   The NOAA National Virtual Data System (NVDS)

### Technology

The following technology components are in scope of the CLASS project:

-   Application servers

-   Data storage and retrieval hardware and system software

-   Database management system

-   Network connectivity between each of the multiple operational CLASS
    sites and the NOAA backbone

-   Telephone call director for help desk support

Network connectivity between the data providers and the NOAA backbone is
out of scope for CLASS. It is assumed data providers have access to the
NOAA backbone, or can stage the data in a location accessible to CLASS
via the backbone or via the Internet.

Development, upgrade, or maintenance of the NOAA backbone is out of
scope for the CLASS project.

The CLASS customer interface is conducted over the Internet using
standard browser technology. No client software or hardware for
interfacing with the customer is in scope.

## Deliverables

The following table identifies the major deliverables for CLASS, and the
estimated delivery dates. These are key high-level support requirements;
more detailed interim milestones are defined in the detailed
implementation activity plans. The table shows the updated status for
each deliverable since the last version of this document. Due to budget
considerations and revised priorities for NESDIS, some deliverables have
been rescheduled or put on indefinite hold, as reflected in the table.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709494 .anchor}Table 1 - CLASS Major
Deliverables

  ------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------
  **Deliverable**                             **Date**      **Update**

  CLASS Release 1.0                           December 2002 Delivered

  GOES Initial Operating Capability --        December 2002 Cancelled
  distribute GOES data                                      

  GOES Archive and Distribution               June 2003     December 2003

  Creation of Geotiff Images                  June 2003     TBD

  Geospatial Databases                        December 2003 TBD

  DMSP Archive and Distribute (SABR)          December 2003 TBD
  integration                                               

  EOS/MODIS Archive and Distribution          December 2003 June 2005

  NPP Archive and Distribution (end-to-end    June 2004     January 2006
  test)                                                     

  Metop Archive and Distribution (end-to-end  October 2004  September
  test)                                                     2005

  CLASS Release 2.0                                         Delivered

  CLASS Release 3.0                                         Delivered

  CLASS Release 3.1                                         Delivered

  CLASS Release 3.2                                         March 2005

  CLASS Release 3.3                                         June 2005

  CLASS Release 4.0                                         December 2005

  CLASS Release 4.1                                         January 2006

  CLASS Release 4.2                                         July 2006

  CLASS Release 4.3                                         October 2006
  ------------------------------------------- ------------- -------------

## Assumptions and Constraints

The following assumptions and constraints underlie the project plan for
CLASS. Changes to these factors could affect the cost, schedule, or
scope of the work included in this plan.

+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+
| **Assumption**                          | **Update**                 |
+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+
| The communication link between Suitland | Link installed and in use  |
| and Asheville is upgraded and meets the |                            |
| needs for data transfer between the     |                            |
| sites.                                  |                            |
+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+
| The E-Commerce system to be used for    | E-Commerce requirements    |
| managing CLASS financial transactions   | changed to only charge for |
| will be developed and available for use | data delivery in physical  |
| by October 2005, in order to conduct    | media. The MD-050          |
| interface testing with CLASS prior to   | (Interface Control         |
| the NPP end-to-end test. The interface  | Document) scheduled for    |
| between CLASS and the E-Commerce system | completion by April 2005.  |
| was defined September 2004 so the CLASS |                            |
| team can begin work on the CLASS        |                            |
| interface code in time to meet the      |                            |
| October 2005milestone.                  |                            |
+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+
| New Assumptions                         |                            |
+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+
| Schedules for NPP and EOS support are   |                            |
| driven by current mission schedules,    |                            |
| and are subject to change as priorities |                            |
| of those missions change.               |                            |
|                                         |                            |
| NMMR will support CLASS                 |                            |
| collection-level metadata management    |                            |
| requirements.                           |                            |
+-----------------------------------------+----------------------------+

## Success and Completion Criteria

### Acceptance Criteria

A system integration and test team, independent of the development
teams, conducts testing of all components of CLASS as they are developed
and turned over to Configuration Management (CM). This integration and
test is a multi-stage process. The stages in the acceptance process are:

-   Integration -- Configuration Management Office (CMO) rebuilds the
    system in Integration Environment (at the CLASS-MD site in Suitland)
    and verifies the system builds correctly.

-   System Test -- CMO builds the system in the Test Environment (at the
    CLASS-MD site in Suitland), and the system test team validates the
    system functionality for established data types.

-   Deployment Test -- CMO builds the system in the Deployment Test
    Environment, and verifies the system was correctly built.

-   Operational Readiness Review -- SIT chairs this intergroup meeting
    confirming the readiness of the system for operations.

Formal acceptance of the system and approval to promote to operations is
the responsibility of the NOAA CLASS Technical Lead, Alex Kidd.

### Critical Success Factors

-   Each team has a detailed project plan that includes dependencies
    between teams, and provides sufficient intermediate milestones for
    tracking.

-   Project progress is tracked to provide the CLASS Project Management
    Team (CPMT) with accurate and current status and forecasts.

-   Risks are identified and managed by the CPMT on a regular basis.

-   Coordination and collaboration of teams at multiple levels within
    CLASS.

-   Standard development processes are defined and followed by all CLASS
    development teams.

-   Lessons Learned sessions are conducted to support process
    improvement.

## Reference Materials

CLASS follows policy as directed by NOAA NESDIS OSD Program Office
Directives (PODs). The following documents provide policy direction to
CLASS project management:

-   OSD POD Technical Management (OSD-1066-NES-DIR-POD)

-   OSD POD Project Management (OSD-1067-NES-DIR-POD)

-   OSD POD Intergroup Coordination (OSD-1068-NES-DIR-POD)

-   OSD POD Change Control (OSD-1069-NES-DIR-POD)

-   OSD POD Acquisition (OSD-1094-NES-DIR-POD)

Above documentation is available in the CLASS Document Repository in the
Baseline Documentation\>Organization\>OSD folder.

The following documents supplement this MPMP for CLASS and provide more
detail on specific topics related to CLASS project management:

-   Quality Management Plan (CLASS-1006-CLS-PLN-QM)

-   Configuration Management Plan (CLASS-1001-CLS-PLN-CM)

-   Software Development Guide (CLASS-1002-CLS-PRO-Guide)

-   Software Development Measurement Plan (CLASS-1054-CLS-PLN-CM)

-   Stakeholder Involvement Plan (CLASS-1083-CLS-PLN-SIT)

-   Individual team Activity Plans

All above documentation is available in the CLASS Document Repository in
Baseline Documentation, stored in appropriate site plans or technical
folders.

The following procedures provide additional detail on project management
related activities:

-   Risk Management (CLASS-1033-CLS-PRO-PM)

-   Issues and Action Tracking (CLASS-1034-CLS-PRO-PM)

-   Estimation Cycle (CLASS-1035-CLS-PRO-PM)

-   Cost and Schedule Tracking (CLASS-1036-CLS-PRO-PM)

-   Operational Readiness Review (CLASS-1049-CLS-PRO-SIT)

-   Requirements baseline Management (CLASS-1030-CLS-PRO-CM)

-   Configuration Change Request (CLASS-1026-CLS-PRO-CM)

All above documentation is available in the CLASS Document Repository in
the [Baseline
Documentation\>Procedures](https://classlibrary.tmctechnologies.com/presentation/lookAndFeel/knowledgeTree/documentmanagement/browseBL.php?fBrowseType=folder&fFolderID=41)
folder.

Other CLASS source, process baseline, management and monitoring
documentation is contained in the CLASS Document Repository in
KnowledgeTree. Additional detailed technical documentation for CLASS is
available online in the CLASS online library:
[library.class.noaa.gov](http://library.saa.noaa.gov/)

Each organization participating in CLASS development and operations can
supplement the CLASS guidelines and procedures with their local
organization's policies and procedures to the extent they do not
conflict with the CLASS direction. CLASS standards and procedures take
precedence over any local organizational standards and procedures unless
the CLASS Technical Area Lead grants a waiver.

## Document Maintenance

This Master Project Management Plan is baselined and approved by both
the Software Engineering Process Group (SEPG) and the CLASS Project
Management Team (CPMT). Any proposed changes to this document will be
presented to the CLASS Process Manager as a new Work Request (WR), in
accordance with the processes defined in the CLASS Work Request (WR)
procedure, and Process Baseline Document Management procedure. During
the course of the project, this document will be reviewed for accuracy
and updated on a yearly cycle to reflect process improvements.

Additionally, all process baseline documentation for CLASS will fall
under the same analysis through the course of this project, be reviewed
for accuracy, and updated on a yearly cycle to reflect process
improvements. As needed, process baseline documentation may be updated
at any time with the submission and approval of a Work Request (WR).

# Management Structure

This section addresses the overall management approach for the CLASS
effort, including

-   Project Lifecycle

-   Project Organization

-   Communication

-   Risk Management

## Project Lifecycle

CLASS is being developed based on a currently operational system for
data archive and distribution, formerly known as the Satellite Active
Archive (SAA). Additional functionality is being added to CLASS to
support new campaigns and expanded data analysis and retrieval
capabilities. The new architecture and requirements are being defined
while the existing operational system is being supported and upgraded.

The major activities being conducted for CLASS are: research into new
technologies, analysis of new requirements, and implementation of new
capabilities. Specific activities are assigned to each of the
participating organizations by NESDIS OSD Project Manager (PM). Planning
of these activities is further defined in the CLASS Software Development
Guide.

-   Research into new technologies: The PM determines new technologies
    to be investigated for potential integration into the system. The
    assigned organization prepares a plan for the assessment, and
    reports results to the CPMT for consideration. If a new technology
    is to be incorporated into CLASS, a Configuration Change Request
    (CCR) is submitted to track the change, as described in the CLASS
    Configuration Management Plan (CMP).

-   Analysis of new requirements: The assigned CLASS organization works
    with the data supplier organization to evaluate and clarify proposed
    requirements for CLASS to support new or changed campaign
    requirements. New requirements from campaigns, or those derived from
    the updated architecture, are submitted and processed as CCRs, as
    defined in the CLASS CMP. CLASS uses the requirements management
    tool DOORS to document and track approved requirements, whatever
    their source. CCR processing is described in the Requirements
    Baseline Management Procedure for Level I (system) and Level II
    (allocated) requirements processing, and in the Configuration Change
    Request (CCR) procedure for Level III (release) requirements
    processing. CCRs are managed in the Remedy tool.

-   Implementation of new capabilities: CLASS uses a release-based
    implementation approach to implement changes to the system, in order
    to support new campaign requirements while minimizing disruption of
    the operational system. All proposed changes are documented as CCRs,
    assigned to a release, and implemented and tested as part of a
    scheduled release. The CLASS software lifecycle and associated
    software engineering processes are defined in the CLASS Software
    Development Guide. Coding standards are defined in the Software
    Standards for IPD (June 30, 2001). Software version control is
    managed using the Concurrent Versions System (CVS) tool, according
    to the processes defined in the CLASS CMP and associated procedures.
    CLASS documentation is contained in the KnowledgeTree repository,
    with specific design documentation contained in the intranet CLASS
    online library.

-   Acquisition: Acquisition for CLASS is conducted on a contractual
    basis as directed and approved by NOAA NESDIS OSD management. As
    necessary, CLASS sites will maintain individual acquisition
    management procedures to identify their process and ensure control
    throughout the activity. The NOAA NESDIS OSD POD on Acquisition
    provides guidance from which to conduct acquisition.

## Project Organization

The CLASS project is a joint effort of various government and contractor
organizations, under the direction of the NESDIS OSD. Each participating
government and contractor organization is led by a Technical Area Lead
(TAL), who is included as a member in the CLASS Project Management Team
(CPMT). Table 2 identifies the voting members of the CPMT.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709495 .anchor}Table 2 - CLASS Project
Management Team Voting Members

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  Richard G. Reynolds, OSD Project    Eric A. Kihn, NGDC
  Manager                             

  Charles S. Bryant OSD               Alexander W. Kidd, OSD

  Constantino Cremidis, CLASS-MD      David P. Bowman, NCDC
  (CSDPC)                             

  Ted Habermann, NGDC                 Carlos Martinez, CLASS-WV
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

###  {#section .unnumbered}

### Project Roles and Responsibilities

The responsibilities of each of the governing bodies are defined in the
following table:

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709496 .anchor}Table 3 - CLASS Project Roles and
Responsibilities

+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| Role            | Responsibility                                     |
+=================+====================================================+
| Board of        | Provides strategic direction and funding advocacy  |
| Directors       | for CLASS                                          |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| Data            | Reviews archive and distribution requirements for  |
| Stewardship     | NOAA and determines role of CLASS in supporting    |
| Committee       | those requirements                                 |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| Archive         | Develops and recommends requirements for CLASS to  |
| Requirements    | the Data Archive Board                             |
| Working Group   |                                                    |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| CLASS           | Stakeholders providing ongoing review for CLASS    |
| Management      | through the Data Archive Working Group             |
| Oversight Group |                                                    |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| NESDIS OSD      | Provides direction and leadership for the CLASS    |
| Project Manager | Project. Allocates responsibility and funding for  |
|                 | components of CLASS to participating               |
|                 | organizations. Assigns Level I -- system           |
|                 | requirements - responsibility. Defines project     |
|                 | goals, plans, and objectives. Manages progress     |
|                 | towards project goals. Prepares and manages the    |
|                 | Budget.                                            |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| CLASS Project   | Supports NESDIS OSD PM in project planning and     |
| Management Team | tracking activities. Provides leadership for the   |
|                 | participating development groups; provides         |
|                 | coordination of activities within each             |
|                 | participating organization. Assigns Level II --    |
|                 | allocated requirements -- responsibility.          |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| CLASS Project   | Project Control Office -- supports integration of  |
| Support         | component schedules and plans; collects and        |
|                 | processes project status; distributes CLASS        |
|                 | project Earned Value reports and assists the CPMT  |
|                 | in analysis of the reports                         |
|                 |                                                    |
|                 | Quality Management Office (QMO) -- supports the    |
|                 | CPMT in the definition and implementation of       |
|                 | software development and quality processes;        |
|                 | provides independent verification of compliance    |
|                 | against CLASS standards and procedures.            |
|                 |                                                    |
|                 | Measurements Administrator -- collects and         |
|                 | calculates release measurements showing trends,    |
|                 | possible areas for improvements based on measures, |
|                 | and calculated basis of estimate for planning      |
|                 | activities.                                        |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| CLASS           | Develop components of CLASS: conduct analysis,     |
| Development     | design, code and development testing of new        |
| Teams           | components.                                        |
|                 |                                                    |
|                 | The supporting development team organization chart |
|                 | is located in the CLASS Document Repository. This  |
|                 | organization chart is dynamic as it reflects       |
|                 | current organizational changes for the CLASS       |
|                 | Development Teams.                                 |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+
| CLASS           | Conduct independent verification of new            |
| Integration and | functionality developed for CLASS                  |
| Test Team       |                                                    |
+-----------------+----------------------------------------------------+

The chart in Figure 1 shows the governing bodies involved in the
management, development, and oversight of the CLASS project. The
corresponding roles and responsibilities of these participants are
defined in Section 2.2.1.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709485 .anchor}Figure 1 - CLASS Project
Organization

### External Interfaces

The CPMT provides the point of contact with other CLASS stakeholders,
such as the current campaign operations teams for those campaigns
planned for integration with CLASS (e.g., NASA IPO), and the operations
teams at the CLASS operational sites. Stakeholders are identified from
all phases of the project life cycle by type of resource and function,
describing their relevance and degree of interaction for specific
project activities. Refer to the CLASS Stakeholder Involvement Plan for
additional information on CLASS stakeholders.

### Internal Coordination

In addition to the CPMT, several other teams have been established to
facilitate coordination across the organizations participating in CLASS
development:

-   The Software Engineering Process Group (SEPG) supports the
    definition and deployment of processes for use on CLASS, and leads
    process improvement activities. The purpose of this group is further
    defined in Section 4.1.1.

-   The Software Engineering Team (SET) provides technical leadership
    and coordination across CLASS to ensure technical consistency and
    compatibility among the development groups. The purpose of this
    group is further defined in Section 4.1.1.

-   The Configuration Control Board (CCB) reviews proposed changes to
    the system baseline, as defined in the CLASS CMP.

-   The CLASS Operations Team (COT) discusses operational capabilities
    and coordination for all operations sites.

-   The System Administration Team (SAT) supports the consistent
    configuration and operation of CLASS.

-   Weekly Developers Meeting is a forum to ensure a common knowledge
    transfer.

Each of these groups has representation from all participating
organizations. Meetings are regularly scheduled and core participation
identified. Attendance is captured in meeting minutes, as appropriate.
Meeting will continue as scheduled, regardless of participation, unless
cancelled in advance. As necessary, meeting items needing disposition
will be carried to the next meeting if the disposing authority is not
present.

Additionally, the configuration management and quality management
functions are provided by a common CMO and QMO located in the CLASS-MD
site in Suitland, MD.

## Communication

In a large, dispersed team such as the CLASS team, facilitating
communication is essential to the project success. The following formal
communication within the joint CLASS team is conducted to ensure
appropriate coordination of the various organization development teams:

-   Weekly CPMT teleconferences, with the following standing agenda
    items

    -   Review of status of inter-group dependencies, including release
        status

    -   Review of selected tasks (identified by the CPMT based on risk,
        schedule criticality, visibility, etc.)

    -   Identify issues and assign action items for their resolution

-   Written project schedules from each development team

-   Monthly progress reports to include task status and budget
    information (see Section 3.4 below)

-   Monthly video-teleconference meeting of CPMT, with the following
    standing agenda items

    -   Review risks (see Section 2.4 for details of the Risk Management
        process)

    -   Review status of draft documents and planned approval dates

    -   Review action items status

    -   Review earned value reports

    -   Report from technical activities, as necessary

    -   Quality activities report, as necessary

-   Periodic meeting of full joint development teams to review status,
    process, and issues

Additionally, special interest groups are formed around major functional
capabilities (e.g., user interface, data ingest) to facilitate
coordination and knowledge sharing among developers in different
organizations who are working on similar or related topics. An online
collaborative environment is used to support communication and teamwork
among the project members, and an online library is maintained for
project documentation.

## Risk Management

Managing risk is the identification, evaluation, mitigation, and
re-evaluation of events that may have an unfavorable impact on the work.

Risk management is a recurring cycle of activities. Major risks are
identified when first planning a project; other risks become apparent
later. When planning a project, the responsible project team analyzes
risks and develops plans to avoid or mitigate them. The CPMT reviews the
risks on a regular basis in order to re-evaluate the possibility of
risks occurring, to identify new risks, and then to activate plans to
prevent their occurrence or to minimize their impact. The Risk
Management Procedure describes further the process for documenting and
managing risks for CLASS.

Risks are identified at two levels, with both being managed on CLASS.
The following addresses the management of managing risks and managing
issues and action items.

### Risks

Risks will be identified either by an individual project team or by the
CPMT itself. Risks on CLASS are characterized with the following
descriptions. Refer to the Risk Management procedure for further
information on documenting and monitoring risks.

-   **Known Risks:** those identified as direct consequences of
    assumptions about the situation or inadequacies in the information
    provided.

-   **Potential/Predictable Risks:** those that are known from
    experience to be encountered in projects of the type being planned.

-   **Unknown Risks:** those that, perhaps suspected, cannot be
    confirmed with the same degree of confidence as known or predictable
    risks.

### Issues and Action Items

Project issues and action items that surface during internal technical
and management meetings or during client meetings are documented
electronically; a closure date is determined; and then they are assigned
for analysis and resolution. Issues not resolvable within the project
are escalated to successive levels of management as required for
resolution. Status of the issues and action are tracked and reported
periodically.

The types of meetings or activities that may generate an entry into the
CLASS change management tool include process audits, lessons learned
sessions, intergroup meetings. Refer to the Issue and Action Tracking
procedure for more information.

# Planning and Control

This section discusses the planned approach for estimating, planning,
and controlling the work.

## Estimation

Estimates for CLASS are primarily based on similar experience, i.e.,
actual effort and duration required for the previous releases, and/or
reported effort and duration for development of other existing systems
that support the relevant campaigns. Where previous experience is not
available (e.g., new technologies or programming language), the project
may conduct prototypes before final estimation of the full system
development effort. The Estimation Cycle Procedure provides a
description of the CLASS estimation process.

## Resource Identification

### Staff

As work is allocated to the participating organizations, each affected
organization prepares a work plan indicating required staffing and skill
levels. The CPMT reviews each work plan as needed, and the OSD PM must
approve all plans. Staffing levels are reviewed at each major milestone
to determine if the available staff is adequate to support work planned.

### Time

CLASS is expected to be a continually evolving system, as new campaigns
and capabilities are integrated into the base system. Major milestones
that drive the activities in the near-term are defined in Section 1.3.
The system has planned releases based on major functionality, directed
from the NOAA NESDIS OSD Project Manager and the CPMT. Release plans are
approved through the CPMT.

### Materials

All materials to be used on the CLASS project will be supplied by NOAA.

A development system will be installed at each major geographic
development site, initially to include Suitland, MD, Fairmont, WV, and
Boulder, CO. The integration and test systems are resident at the NOAA
Suitland facility and the NCDC facility in Asheville, NC. The deployment
test system resides at the NCDC site in Asheville, NC. The operational
system has been duplicated at Suitland, MD and Asheville, NC.

## Resource Allocation

### Work Breakdown Structure

The following table shows the top levels of the WBS for CLASS. This
provides the level of information required for project planning and
tracking at the CPMT level. Lower levels are defined in the individual
MS Project schedules developed by each participating organization.
Changes to the WBS are proposed, reviewed, and conducted on a yearly
basis to correlate with the government fiscal year cycle.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709497 .anchor}Table 4 - CLASS Work Breakdown
Structure for FY05

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  **WBS**      **Task Name**
  ------------ ----------------------------------------------------------
  CA-1         

               Project Management

               Quality Management

               Configuration Management

               Project Control

  CA-2         

               CLASS Architecture and Design

               CLASS Requirements

               

               Interface Definition

  CA-3         

               Suitland Infrastructure

               Asheville Infrastructure

               NGDC Development System

               COAST Hardware and System Software

               Tool Support

  CA-4         

               Implementation CLASS 3.1

               Implementation CLASS 3.2

               Implementation CLASS 3.3

               Implementation CLASS 4.0

               Implementation CLASS 4.1

               Implementation CLASS 4.2

               Implementation Interim Releases

  CA-5         

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 3.1

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 3.2

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 3.3

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 4.0

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 4.1

               Integration, Test and Deployment CLASS 4.2

               Integration, Test and Deployment Interim Releases

               

  CA-6         

               Document Maintenance

               Metrics Analysis

               SEPG Activities

               CMMI Evaluation Preparation

  CA-7         

               Unplanned Support

               System Support

  CA-8         

               Suitland Operations

               Asheville Operations

  CA-9         

               Reserved

  CA-10        

               Science Support
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

### Schedule

The high-level milestones for deliverables are provided in Section 1.3.
The detailed schedule activities are provided in the individual
component MS Project files, and rolled up to the CLASS level in the
CLASS master schedule.

## Tracking and Control

### Cost and Schedule Tracking and Control

CLASS cost and schedule is managed using an Earned Value measurement
system. The Cost and Schedule Tracking Procedure describes the process
and standards for earned value planning and tracking.

### Quality Tracking and Control

Quality of the products produced for CLASS is monitored through peer
review, independent testing, and periodic process audits, as defined in
the CLASS Quality Management Plan and the CLASS Software Development
Guide. Supporting procedures define individual steps and forms needed.
Procedures are controlled in the CLASS Document Repository under the
Baseline Documentation\>Procedures folder.

### Functionality Tracking and Control

The CMO manages all proposed changes to the approved system baseline
(requirements, software, hardware, etc.), with the review and approval
of the CLASS CCB. For more detail, refer to the CLASS Configuration
Management Plan and associated procedures. CLASS management plans,
source documentation, and supporting procedures are controlled through
the CMO and retained in the CLASS Document Repository.

### Measurements

The CLASS Measurement Administrator gathers and reports release-based
measurements. Summary contents in the reports include planned versus
actual comparisons, trends, summary analysis, and calculated basis of
estimate for release planning. The site Earned Value Administrators at
CLASS sites are responsible for collecting, tracking, and reporting
progress against cost and schedule.

### Stakeholder Involvement

Coordination and interaction between relevant stakeholders is essential
to providing project direction and implementation. These activities
involve Operational Readiness Reviews (ORR), requirements review, and
the Configuration Control Board (CCB), and resolution of problems or
issues. Refer to the Stakeholder Involvement Plan for further
information.

# Technical Process

This section summarizes the top-level technical approach used on this
project. Details about the technical processes are provided in the
Software Development Guide.

## Engineering

This section describes the organizational environment and processes that
define the engineering approach for the CLASS project. The organizations
identified meet on a regularly scheduled basis. Their meetings will
continue regardless of participation. As needed, quorum decisions may be
held to a future meeting if adequate participation is lacking. As
needed, other intergroup organizations may be established to discuss and
monitor related activities.

### Environment

The Software Development Guide, the CLASS Configuration Management Plan,
and the associated procedures provide system and software engineering
processes for use throughout the CLASS project for all phases of the
development life cycle. Specifically, the Software Development Guide
discusses the CLASS processes for the following activities:

-   Release planning

-   Estimation

-   Peer review

-   Design, code, and documentation standards

-   Testing

The Configuration Management Plan describes the process for managing
changes to requirements or other system baseline elements, and the
promotion process for CLASS software.

The CLASS Software Engineering Process Group (SEPG) includes
representatives from each organization participating in the CLASS
project, and serves as a process advisory council to the CLASS Process
Manager. The SEPG and the CLASS Process Manager provide leadership and
expertise in the definition, documentation, and application of processes
for the full lifecycle. Table 5, below, identifies the members of the
CLASS SEPG.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709498 .anchor}Table 5. SEPG Members

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  Guy Baroni                          Mark Ohrenschall

  Michelle Hayes                      Doug Zirkle

  Anita Konzak                        Chairie Smith

  Betty Tilley                        
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

The CLASS Systems Engineering Team (SET), following the processes
defined in the Software Development Guide, coordinates the engineering
functions. This is a cross-organizational team consisting of technical
representatives from each participating organization, government and
contractor. As an advisory group to the CPMT, this team helps assure
that all CLASS system-level requirements are defined and allocated to
the appropriate organization for analysis and implementation.

[]{#__RefHeading___Toc95709499 .anchor}Table 6. SET Members

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  Barry Wishner                       Doug Zirkle

  Amy Drew                            Yue Ko

  Pat Schafer                         Tom Lahoda

  Ken Tanaka                          Brian Merandi

  Chris Wells                         Kris Nuttycombe
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

### Methods, Tools, and Techniques

The activities of the SET include:

-   System definition and design

-   Review of functional design and implementation for significant
    system components

-   Review and recommendation on CCRs, including requirements changes
    and software changes

After requirements have been allocated to a specific development team
through approved CCRs, the development team activities include:

-   Software and database design

-   Software implementation

-   Testing

-   Configuration Management

-   Documentation

-   Problem reporting and tracking

Each development group prepares detailed plans for the completion of
their assigned activities.

CLASS maintains central CM and system test teams to manage the
integration and delivery of the system releases.

CLASS uses the requirements management tool to document requirements and
to maintain traceability from requirements to design elements and to
test cases.

CLASS uses the CLASS Document Repository as a central repository for the
various development teams.

The Issues and Action Tracking Procedure describes the procedure for
documenting and tracking issues and action items for CLASS.

### Process Training

Periodic training is conducted for all project personnel to learn,
review, and reinforce project standards and procedures. The CLASS
Training Coordinator, and as needed, Process Manager reviews process
training needs at least annually, and coordinates the necessary training
with the development groups. Each development group maintains training
records for the members of that team.

## Technology 

This section describes the physical development environment and the
tools and methods used to support development.

### Environment

CLASS software is developed and maintained at several development sites
linked to a Central Development Facility (CDF), located at the CLASS-MD
site in Suitland, MD. The development sites are in:

-   Suitland, MD

-   Asheville, NC

-   Fairmont, WV

-   Boulder, CO

The CLASS configuration management team establishes and maintains the
software repository server at the CDF. It is the responsibility of each
site to setup and maintain their local development environment.
Developers at each site check out software from the central repository,
copy it to their local systems, develop and test software locally, and
"Commit" finished products to the CDF.

The CLASS configuration management team is responsible for promoting
software to the integration and test environments and to operations.
Each release is integrated and independently tested at the CDF, and
distributed from there to the operational sites.

The operational system is located at the NOAA facility in Suitland, MD,
and the NCDC facility in Asheville, NC. These two sites archive and
access the same data files so that failover can be achieved quickly and
either site can fill any order and support all operations. Test teams at
each operational facility will conduct acceptance testing of each
software release.

### Methods, Tools, and Techniques

A variety of tools are currently in use to support technical activities.
New tools may be added, upon SET approval, as CLASS evolves. The CLASS
tool set includes the following.

-   The Telelogic package Tau-UML (formerly Object Team) supports
    object-oriented design with the Unified Modeling Language (UML). It
    generates various diagrams that are useful for analysis and design
    (e.g., Use Case, Activity, State, Sequence, Class Association
    diagrams), verifies design consistency, and generates reports.

-   The primary programming languages used are C++, Java, JavaScript,
    and Perl.

-   Off-the-shelf components are used in the Java/XML-based user
    interface:

    -   Apache - HTTP server

    -   Cocoon - publishing framework

    -   Turbine - database connection pooling

    -   Tomcat - servlet engine

    -   Log4j - message logging

    -   Informix Java Database Connectivity (JDBC) Driver

-   Perl scripts are used to automate testing

-   A suite of custom-built Perl programs is used to manage and log
    software promotions

-   Off-the-shelf tools are use to generate on-line software reference
    documentation in HTML format (e.g., Javadoc, Doxygen)

-   The Informix database supports all phases of development,
    configuration management, and operations

-   ERWin is used for database design.

-   The CLASS document repository, a KnowledgeTree implementation that
    is available at https://classlibrary.tmctechnologies.com/, is used
    as a central repository for the various technical teams.

-   The CLASS configuration management tool, a Concurrent Versions
    System (CVS) implementation, provides software version control in
    the distributed development environment.

-   The CLASS change management tool, a Remedy implementation, is used
    to create and track Action Items, Configuration Change Requests,
    Problem Reports, and Work Requests.

-   The CLASS requirements management tool, a DOORS implementation, is
    used to manage CLASS requirements.

-   The CLASS library (library.saa.noaa.gov) is used for detailed CLASS
    design documentation.

-   Lotus Notes is used by CLASS-MD personnel as a repository for select
    quality and site-specific financial and acquisition information.

### Technical Training

The project roles, and the skills required to effectively perform each
role for the project, are reviewed on a periodic basis. Each
participating organization is responsible for conducting regular skills
assessment for their project personnel, and assessing and addressing
training needs.

# Supporting Plans

This section references the detailed supporting plans.

## Configuration Management

CLASS Configuration Management Plan, CLASS-1001-CLS-PLN-CM

## Quality Management

CLASS Quality Management Plan, CLASS-1006-CLS-PLN-QM

## Testing

CLASS System Integration and Test Plan, CLASS-1040-CLS-PLN-SIT

CLASS CSDPC & NCDC Regression Test Plan, CLASS-1053-CLS-PLN-SIT

## Software Development 

Software Standards for Information Processing Division (IPD), June 30,
2001

CLASS Software Development Guide, CLASS-1002-CLS-PRO-Guide

## Operations Support

CLASS Operations Support Plan, CLASS-1061-CLS-PLN-OPS

## Team Activity Plans

At the start of new sub-projects of CLASS, the team prepares an activity
plan, based on this master plan, and tailored to the specific activities
included in the sub-project. These plans are posted in the CLASS
Document Repository.

# Definitions and Acronyms

  ----------- -----------------------------------------------------------
  CCB         Configuration Control Board

  CCR         Configuration Change Request

  CDF         Central Development Facility

  CIO         Chief Information Officer

  CLASS       Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System

  CM          Configuration Management

  CMM         Capability Maturity Model

  ComMIT      Comprehensive Management Information Tool

  CMO         Configuration Management Office

  CMP         Configuration Management Plan

  COAST       Customer Order Account Software acquisition Team

  CPMT        CLASS Project Management Team

  CSC         Computer Sciences Corporation

  CSDPC       Central Satellite Data Processing Center

  CVS         Concurrent Versions System

  DoD         Department of Defense

  EOS         Earth Observing System

  EUMETSAT    European Organization for the Exploitation of
              Meteorological Satellites

  EV          Earned Value

  EVM         Earned Value Measurement

  GAA         GOES Active Archive

  GOES        Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite

  IOC         Initial Operating Capability

  IPD         Information Processing Division

  IPO         Integrated Program Office

  JDBC        Java Database Connectivity

  Metop       European Meteorological Operational Satellite Program

  MODIS       Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer

  MPMP        Master Project Management Plan

  NASA        National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  NCAAS       NOAA Coast watch Active Access System

  NCDC        National Climatic Data Center

  NeS         NESDIS e-commerce System

  NESDIS      National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information
              Service

  NEXRAD      NOAA NEXt generation weather RADAR Program

  NGDC        National Geophysical Data Center

  NNDC        NOAA National Data Centers

  NOAA        National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

  NODC        National Oceanographic Data Center

  NPOESS      National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite
              System

  NPP         NPOESS Preparatory Program

  OSD         Office of System Development

  PCO         Project Control Office

  POES        NOAA and DoD Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental
              Satellites

  QM          Quality Management

  QMO         Quality Management Office

  SAA         Satellite Active Archive

  SABR        Satellite Archive Browse and Retrieval

  SEI         Software Engineering Institute

  SEPG        Software Engineering Process Group

  SET         System Engineering Team

  TAL         Technical Area Lead

  TBD         To Be Determined

  TBW         To Be Written

  TMC         TMC Technologies

  UML         Unified Modeling Language

  WBS         Work Breakdown Structure

  WP          Work Package
  ----------- -----------------------------------------------------------