Successful Enterprise Integration Using the IEC CIM Margaret Goodrich, Manager, Systems Engineering SISCO, Inc. 6605 19½ Mile Road Sterling Heights, MI 48314 USA Tel: +1-903-477-7176 E-Mail: margaret@sisconet.com
Enterprise Integration with CIM The benefits Common semantic model for all areas of utility operations Fully-specified, standardized XML messaging for data in flight Vendor independence, increasing vendor uptake The challenges Legacy applications don t speak CIM Information Technology / Operational Technology culture clash Big Data All of the usual organizational impacts of integration re-engineering, plus Retraining!
The Keys to Success Information Requirements Map your enterprise onto the CIM metamodel of an electric utility Find the language for IT to communicate with OT Understand security requirements Enterprise Integration Environment Choose the right toolchain(s) Service Bus Adapter framework Information modelling tools Incremental Adoption Identify highest-value interfaces to begin with Manage your training strategy
Information Requirements Integration is more than mapping data, bit by bit Integration mediates business process steps Business process + data = information Business process can be captured: in terms of actors and use cases in terms of information lifecycle and activity diagrams Capture information requirements for your integration points: and you have modelled a lot of your enterprise and you have a bridge between data-centric (OT) and process-centric (IT) worldviews
Extending the Standards Information requirements also discover any gaps in the standards SISCO s robust methodology for extension Direct involvement with IEC Working Groups from the beginning of CIM Compatible change UML stereotypes to capture status of submission/acceptance Implementation does not need to wait for extensions to be accepted into the standards
The Payoff of Integration Standards Who needs to know what? Gradually converge a proliferation of legacy skill sets on the standard Avoid the need for knowledge transfer about legacy representations The Bus : The Integration Backbone! Nothing except standard messages Adaptation: transform legacy to standard in order to get on the bus And transform standard to legacy to get off the bus What s the pitfall?
Who builds the adapters (hint: this is the possible pitfall)? The Bus has its own ownership Integration Competency Center or call it what you will The Bus is business-critical - therefore it has serious hosting and tooling requirements If the custodians of The Bus build the adapters they need to learn all of the legacy data models and interfaces This is uniquely difficult If the custodians of the legacy applications build the adapters they need to learn the bus tooling and the standard which they should learn anyway
What are the new skills? Information Modelling UML XML / XSD / XSLT Tools Information Modelling e.g. Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect CIM Profiling e.g. CIMTool Adapter Framework JMS / JPA / JCA
Where to start? Highest-value interfaces: what kind of value? Cost/benefit Organizational impact Training, retraining, cross-training, collaboration New capabilities Consumer engagement Regulatory mandates Enable retirement of legacy systems
Building Out the Integration Environment CIM doesn t care what you use The key is ownership of the information (including business process!) of the technology Invest in growing the knowledge base around the standards Avoid having to grow the knowledge base around the legacy apps Any Bus will do as long as it has the capabilities you need for standard message exchange. Use what you have if it is good enough rather than retraining.
Training Always hands-on in the context of the selected toolchain(s) Information modelling concepts and the standards themselves Information requirements Business process Security Deltas to the standards Your differentiators New discoveries of general interest Adaptation tactics
The rest is program scope and planning Standards adoption is transformative Even more so organizationally than technologically Investment is front-loaded Pipeline projects for cumulative value and quickest benefits Milestones Success criteria Plan the investment stream This is a multi-year effort As one of my Standards buddies says: CIM is not the easiest way to do anything it is the easiest way to do everything!
Questions & Contacts Margaret Goodrich Home Office: 903-489-1494 Cell: 903-477-7176 Email: margaret@sisconet.com