Filtering COTS Components Through an Improvement-Based Process

Typically, COTS evaluations embody a first stage intended to determine rapidly which products are suitable in a target context. This stage –called “filtering” or “screening” – chooses a set of alternatives to be considered for more detailed evaluation. For successful filtering processes, composers increasingly focus on closing the gap between required and offered functionality, hence reducing ambiguity of information for comparison. In this paper, we introduce a filtering process, which is based on early measurement of functional suitability of COTS candidates. Measures are immersed in a Six Sigma-based process aiming at improving the filtering process itself as well as its deliverables.