Maintaining system of systems that are fit for purpose: Effectively and efficiently preparing for the unforeseeable

This article hypothesizes that a system of systems (SoS) that is not fit for purpose (FFP) is unfit because it cannot implement the correct, timely, and complete transfers of matter, energy, and information (MEI) between its constituents and with its external environment that are necessary to achieve a particular result. This research addresses the problem of maintaining an SoS FFP after unpredictable changes in operation, composition, or external factors by creating a method implemented as an engineering process and supported by an analysis technique to enhance the affordance of the SoS constituents for MEI transfer (MEIX) and to reveal potential undesirable transfers.