Internship - HBO/WO - Redesign of the Technical Agreement Wizard

About Thales

With 80.000 talents working in 68 countries, we are one of the biggest high-tech employers in the field of safety and security. Thales Nederland designs advanced Radars and Combat Systems used on naval vessels and land-based test systems. Such a Combat System includes the TACTICOS Combat Management System, which interfaces with a wide array of subsystems such as sensors, actuators, communication systems, and bridge systems. Increasingly, these subsystems are directly connected to a shared network, allowing them to exchange information directly with CMS applications running on dedicated hardware. The interface between TACTICOS and the subsystem is specified in a Technical Agreement (TA). These TAs are critical for the correct integration of subsystems with TACTICOS and govern topics like data contracts, interface definitions, communication protocols and service-level expectations.

You will be working within the multi-disciplinary CMS Infrastructure group, a key unit of the Application Engineering department. This department is responsible for developing the software for the TACTICOS CMS. Specifically, the CMS Infrastructure group consists of about 90 persons (ranging from engineers to line managers) that are responsible for creating the platform software that supports the TACTICOS CMS.

Given the diverse range of technologies and functionalities involved in infrastructure development—spanning from application and Linux Operating System programming to network appliance management and specialized tooling—the group is divided into several teams, each consisting of about 5-10 persons. Each team focuses on a distinct set of products and technologies, ensuring a comprehensive approach to development and maintenance.

About the assignment

As the network technology used on the interface becomes more and more complex it becomes more difficult to describe the interface in the TA. To facilitate the specification of these interfaces, Thales Nederland has developed a Java-based tool that aids system engineers in creating comprehensive and consistent specifications of the network specifications in the Technical Agreement. The use of this tool contributes to uniform specifications, enhancing system integration, performance and robustness. 

Currently, the tool demands significant maintenance due to its original design choices and the gradual expansion of the tool's functionality. This limitation hampers the introduction of new functionalities, despite the growing diversity and complexity of subsystems.

Therefore, we are looking for a new architecture of the specification tool, aiming to make it easier to enhance its functionality and flexibility. This will result in a redesign of the tool such that the current issues are solved. After the redesign, the tool should be more extensible and require less maintenance. The new design must consider the large amount of variability that is present in a CMS. Part of the work is also to look at the best way(s) to provide the system engineer with support from within the tool or from external sources.

During this assignment you will:

• Analyze the current tool and its architecture.
• Identify pain points, rigidities and functional gaps.
• Conduct a stakeholder analysis to collect user stories and expectations.
• Define an improved architecture.
• Define functional enhancement ideas.
• Implement a prototype.

About the Team

During your internship, you will join the team that has the responsibility for managing the network aspects of the TACTICOS CMS. This experience will provide you with valuable exposure to a variety of technologies, technical challenges, and development practices within a cutting-edge technology environment. During the assignment the work will be organized using the Agile methodology. This means you will plan the work using Epics, Stories and Tasks that are planned in Sprints. Also, progress is shown using Sprint Demos in which you can demonstrate your work.

Affinity

Affinity and/or experience with Java Programming (must) and Computer Networking (preferred).

What’s in it for you

• An interesting internship or graduation assignment within our high-tech, innovative work environment;
• A comfortable, flexible work space in a modern environment;
• An excellent internship allowance;
• Its own student association where you can participate in educational and fun activities.

Interested?

Apply now! Click on the button below to upload your CV and motivation!
Please keep in mind that we can only accept students who are enrolled at a school during the whole internship or graduation period.