Weather Forecasting: Recommendations to Address New Weather Processing System Development Risks
AIMD-96-74
Published: May 13, 1996. Publicly Released: May 13, 1996.
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Highlights
GAO reviewed the National Weather Service's (NWS) Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) and made recommendations to strengthen NWS ability to achieve a fair return on its AWIPS investment.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| National Weather Service | NWS should ensure that each system build is fully tested and all material defects are corrected before software development associated with the next build begins. |
Closed – Not Implemented
NOAA does not agree with the recommendation and does not intend to implement it. NOAA believes that judicious overlapping of software builds is efficient and appropriate in some cases.
|
| National Weather Service | NWS should establish a software quality assurance program to increase the probability of delivering promised AWIPS capability on time and within budget. |
Closed – Not Implemented
NOAA does not agree with the recommendation and does not intend to implement it. NOAA does not believe that an independent software quality assurance program would be cost-effective.
|
| National Weather Service | NWS should obtain an independent assessment of the cost to develop and deploy AWIPS. |
Closed – Not Implemented
NOAA does not agree with the recommendation and does not intend to implement it. NOAA does not believe that an independent cost estimate would add value.
|
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