RAPAT® for Excel 365
Detailed TRL Assessment Help Sheet

Use of Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs)

The Technology Readiness Level (TRL) concept, first developed by NASA, is now used in several industry sectors and provides an indication of technology maturity. TRLs typically run from 1 to 9 with TRL 1 being the lowest level of technology maturity and TRL 9 corresponding to field or mission proven technology.

Some sectors and end users have developed their own TRL definitions. However, the intent is consistent with most sectors using the same 1 to 9 levels with slight variations in the level descriptions to reflect the industry sector-specific application. Hence the high level TRL 1 to 9 definitions provide a common framework for communicating technology maturity, e.g. to investors, funding bodies or end-users, to enable an understanding of the extent and nature of work required to qualify technology to the required level as well as the potential level of technical and commercial risk.

The oil and gas industry has one main difference also using a 0 to 7 scale, particularly for subsea applications, see API RP 17Q and ISO 20815. This uses similar definitions for corresponding levels with e.g. API RP 17Q TRL 7 corresponding to NASA TRL 9. It is important to be clear which scale is used (1 to 9) or (0 to 7) when communicating achieved TRL to a third party.

Achievement of a specific TRL may be a requirement for investment or technology application by end users. TRL milestones are sometimes used as decision stage gates in technology development projects for example to support continued investment decisions, or adoption into deployment projects.

Assessing TRL

Early in a technology qualification project, TRL is often assessed at a high level for the technology system as a whole to enable an initial understanding of the technology maturity to support qualification planning and include in funding applications. The RAPAT “High Level TRL Assessment” worksheet has been designed to support this. It utilises a generic 1 to 9 TRL scale combining guidance from different industry sectors. For each TRL, five contributing elements are described to indicate the type of activities expected to be completed to achieve that TRL.

As the technology development project progresses and more detail about the design becomes available, a more detailed component level assessment can be undertaken using the “Detailed TRL Assessment” worksheet. The component assessment is then used to provide an overall technology system TRL. The “Detailed TRL Assessment” worksheet can also be used for an initial assessment of more mature technology, e.g. technology proven for one application being qualified for a new application.

The TRL assessment should be based on evidence of undertaking the required qualification activity elements to achieve each TRL. It is recommended that the assessment is undertaken as a group activity involving relevant members of the technology development team. For modified technology being qualified for new applications, it can be useful to get input from previous qualification/use. As the assessment can be subjective, the end user may need to be involved in the assessment to ensure there is agreement of achieved TRL.

Using the Detailed TRL Assessment worksheet

At the top of the RAPAT “Detailed TRL Assessment” worksheet, the “Detailed TRL Assessment Completion Status” will initially be set to “Not started”. Use the dropdown list to change this to “In progress” or “Completed” as appropriate. The “Type of Assessment” in relation to the overall qualification programme should also be identified - this can be set to “Initial”, “Interim” or “Final” to enable the initial TRL at the start of the qualification work to be captured separately to both the current TRL (at a specific interim point in the project) and the final achieved TRL at the end of the qualification programme. The date of the assessment should also be identified.

The worksheet includes a Detailed TRL Assessment table and, below this, definitions of each TRL together with guidance on expected activities (presented as 5 contributing elements) that should be completed to achieve each TRL. Complete the Detailed TRL Assessment table as follows:

• If the technology components are already defined in the “Design and Manufacture” worksheet or the “FMECA” worksheet then insert the cross reference of the component on that worksheet. This will then automatically populate the relevant component/sub-assembly name. Otherwise the component/sub-assembly details can be added manually at the appropriate level of detail for the assessment.
• For each component/sub-assembly, identify its function and the associated performance target. If the FMECA worksheet has been cross-referenced, then this information will also be automatically populated. Depending on the granularity of the TRL assessment and complexity of the device, a separate row may be required for different component functions.
• Identify any previous qualification work relevant to the component/sub-assembly and the identified function(s). This should include references to earlier research, testing/analysis and application or to activities already completed as part of the project - these may already be identified on the “Design and Manufacture”, “Testing and Analysis” or “Assurance and Certification” worksheets if these have been completed in advance of the detailed TRL assessment and can be cross referenced or hyperlinked accordingly.
• Starting with TRL 1, work down the 5 contributing elements in the TRL Definitions table and consider the work done to date and supporting evidence of this to assess the extent to which the contributing element has been addressed. For some technologies/applications (e.g. novel process) the element descriptions may need to be adapted or may not be relevant but it is important to take the intent of the element into account. If all contributing elements for that TRL have been addressed, then progress to the next TRL until a TRL is reached for which some or all of the contributing elements still need to be addressed. The Current TRL is then the highest TRL for which all contributing elements have been fully addressed.
• Identify the required TRL for that component. This can assist with understanding the extent of qualification work still required and where qualification gaps remain. The required TRL may be determined by a funding body, a potential end-user, or an internal aspiration.
• Add any comments related to the assessment, for example any contributing elements already addressed that contribute to achievement of higher TRLs.
• Add any actions, together with due date and responsibility, arising from the assessment. This may, for example, include actions to check on available qualification evidence or additional qualification tests to be undertaken. The Status column is used to track action progress.

The dashboard at the top of the worksheet automatically captures the number of components at each TRL. The overall system TRL is then populated automatically based on the lowest TRL of the technology components. Each of the 1 to 9 levels is also colour coded as follows to enable an understanding of the progress against higher TRLs:

• Green: TRL achieved for all components
• Yellow: TRL achieved for some components
• Red: Work towards achievement of TRL not yet started

Note 1: There are a number of different approaches used for assessing system TRL. These include use of an “average” component TRL as opposed to the lowest TRL of each of the components. Use of an average component TRL is not aligned with the original NASA intent and does not convey the same understanding of qualification work required. It can lead to confusion and misunderstanding of the achieved TRL and remaining gaps for completion.

Note 2: Some organisations promote the use of integration/interface readiness levels (IRLs) to assess the maturity of component and sub-system interfaces. However, some of these organisations also suggest modifying individual component TRLs by a factor based on its IRL. Again, this is not aligned with the original NASA intent and can lead to confusion and misunderstanding of achieved component and system TRL.

Updating the TRL Assessment

Once the initial assessment is complete, it is recommended that the TRL assessment is updated at key project decision gates (Current Interim TRL) and at completion of a product development/technology qualification project (Final TRL). Updated assessments can be created by either:

• Using the “Create Updated Detailed TRL Assessment” button near the top of the worksheet to create an updated detailed component assessment worksheet - this will be prepopulated with the earlier assessment to facilitate the update
• Using the “Create High Level TRL Assessment” button near the top of the worksheet to open the high level TRL assessment worksheet - this can be used to undertake a simpler assessment if required, for example as an update to investors or management teams

The dashboard from the most recent Detailed TRL assessment will be displayed on the Current Status worksheet.