What are specifications (part 2)?
Requirements specification: the central requirements specification for every project
Expansions and adjustments to production capacities, changes to system components or even the complete redesign of a warehouse management system - in all these cases, it is important to describe exactly and in detail what is actually to be created, adapted or changed and for what purpose. A specification sheet sets out in precise form the specifications of a project and which standards or special features, for example, need to be taken into account.
Our logistics lexicon explains the structure and function of a specification sheet and distinguishes the term from the requirements specification.
Definition of specifications: documentation of the project requirements
Efficient warehouse management is based on high-performance warehouse management software (WMS) that can be specifically tailored to requirements and flexibly adapted. Here at proLogistik, we have therefore opted for a modular structure, which allows a wide range of functions for customers in every industry. But what about projects that are to be planned and implemented on the basis of specific requirements? In such a case, the specifications are of central importance.
This is because the entire scope of what is to be implemented is formulated and set out in the specifications. A company ensures that potential contractors know exactly what is involved and what is required - the basis for being able to submit a bid at all. When it comes to construction activities, a bill of quantities is commonly used instead of a specification sheet.
Structure and functionality: these points are included in the specifications
The more precisely individual functional components are described and narrowed down, the better the specifications. It therefore makes sense to divide a specification sheet clearly into categories and thus present in a structured way what exactly is required. We would like to outline the structure of a specification sheet:
- Initial situation: What is the subject of the delivery? What makes the product stand out? What objectives are associated with this?
- Requirements: For which operating conditions should the product be designed? What standards need to be met? Which functions and components should be provided?
- General conditions: According to which standards or guidelines should the project be realized? What partial deliveries or discounts are agreed? What target values are to be achieved with regard to individual indicators (efficiency of the system, adaptability, etc.)?
- Conditions: What milestones characterize the project? Are partial services to be provided? To what extent do guarantee and warranty claims exist? When are payments to be made, if applicable? reduced by contractual penalties/delay damages?
- Acceptance criteria: What are the principles for (partial) acceptance of the project? What standards must be met? According to which criteria must complaints, notifications of defects or rectifications be made?
Further points can be added to the requirements specification or supplemented in individual areas, for example on project phases, functional and non-functional requirements as well as open points that are only added later. The way a specification sheet works is that it becomes clear very early on in the course of project planning what is to be provided -> for what purpose -> with which specifications and in which form.
Requirements specification versus functional specification: What are the differences?
The requirements specification as a compact document, from which project objectives and co. are derived, is relatively at the beginning of every project. This is where ideas are concretized, requirements formulated and functions or standards defined that characterize the whole. In practice, specifications are adapted and thus changed relatively frequently. For example, if it turns out that the planning of warehouse management software (WMS) falls short, important points are missing or no specifications can be derived from it.
This means: The requirements specification is always available before the functional specification; it describes the functional framework and the basic framework conditions. The specifications substantiate all of this, resulting in ways and means of exactly how functions are implemented. It is the result of the considerations set out in the specifications.
