Workshop Topics

Business issues

Highlighting the scale of data integration problems and their current impact on industry with examples from the Aerospace and Defence, Process and other sectors, particularly where the 'product lifecycle' is orders of magnitude longer than the lifecycle of typical IT solutions.

Concepts

• Data currency, quality and integrity and how they affect the value of the data. 

• 'Level of Intelligence' or how much value can be extracted from it. For instance, scanned images can only be used interpreted by the user while a 3D mode has many more uses; ASCII text can be ambiguous, while predefined parameters can remove such ambiguity. 

• Data reuse and how it impacts return on investment in corporate information.

Approaches and techniques

Integration of data and information can be achieved in a number of different ways. The available approaches depend upon a number of different characteristics including the intended use of the results, the size of the problem, available budget, and the objectives of the parties involved.

There are three generally recognised approaches for integration of data and information for and across the enterprise. These are Extract Transform Load (ETL), Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) and Enterprise Information Integration (EII). These different approaches can all be appropriate depending upon the situation and requirement.

However information integration is only part of the story, in that it is only really sensible to be integrating information which is clean and consistent to achieve a unified view. This typically requires a programme of data quality improvement as well as data consolidation activities.

Best practice

Numerous examples from past implementation projects including analysis and implementation methodologies demonstrated by stepping through a practical scenario derived from the Aerospace and Defence sector.

Generating added value through increasing reusability of data

Data integration projects offer numerous opportunities to generate extra value from investment in corporate information. The early CAD systems were ‘sold’ on the premise that they automated the production of engineering drawings. It was soon realised that the value of these systems was not so much in automating the production of an engineering drawing, but in the benefits that accrue through of the reuse drawing information.

Today we have plethora of systems such as CAx, PDM, ERP and CRM, each holding a subset of the overall corporate information. By examining these areas of overlap and then rationalising and optimising them, both the reusability and quality of the data can be enhanced. This create a situation where the whole has much higher value than the sum of parts (2+2=8!).

Perception and reality of data exchange and the role of standards

There is a widespread misconception that data exchange solves interoperability problems between legacy systems. The workshop will demonstrate why data exchange is the problem rather than the solution. Standards can play an important role in achieving interoperability as long as they are used within a data sharing rather than a data exchange context.

Live demonstration

The second day of the workshop will walkthrough the motions of a data integration task and show how standards such as PLCS (Product Lifecycle Support - ISO 1030 - AP 239) can be used to good effect.