Alistair Gunn wrote:
Just zis Guy, you know? twisted the electrons to say:
So we recommended that he enclose and air condition the mixing bay and
start the mixing crew two hours before the main shift.

What was the response?

Obviously that he wanted us to build the automated balance testing
system first and /then/ look at the mixing bay project, which was
cheaper and would make the balance testing system redundant.

I think the clear fault there was giving the client what they needed, as
opposed to what they said they'd wanted! :-)

You have there the major difference between a soft systems analysis and
the hard systems approach.

Up till now the helmets issue has I think , been seen by Whitehall as
requiring a hard systems approach of "Here is our target, reducing
deaths by increasing helmet wearing, how do achieve it" , rather than
the soft systems idea of "What is the problem , from all viewpoints, and
how do we cure or ameliorate it to the best effect for all concerned?"
The same could be said of traffic planning in general since the 60's ,
but now I think I'm seeing some chinks of Soft Systems light appearing
in the talk of shared streets and open spaces.