1.2.2 COTS INTEGRATION IN SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS A COST MODEL
Tim Ellis · INCOSE International Symposium · 1995
Abstract In today's global marketplace, software solutions are not only composed of newly developed code, but may also consist of one or more Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) software products which provide existing functionality. More and more customers are requiring the use of COTS software products whenever possible. In COTS based solutions, more functionality is bought rather than made. This reduces the software development cost but at the same time increases the amount of integration work. It is extremely difficult to estimate the effort to integrate various COTS products into one seamless solution. Past experience at Loral Federal Systems (LFS) has shown that the traditional method of using Source Lines of Code (SLOC) as an estimation technique in the COTS arena does not yield accurate results. This paper will describe the construction and implementation of a bid cost model which uses Function Point Analysis and the identification of COTS cost drivers to help estimate the COTS integration effort. The model is not a paper model, but an actual database application with a Graphical User Interface (GUI). This effort was supported financially by LFS.