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Future Energy Delivery Information Technology Design and Strategies: A 2005 Vision
Paul J. Yarka
Convergent Group
6399 South Fiddler’s Green Circle Suite 600
Englewood, CO 80111
Paul J. Yarka
Convergent Group
6399 South Fiddler’s Green Circle Suite 600
Englewood, CO 80111
Over the past 12 months, significant worldwide utility industry news continued to focus on utility deregulation, corporate mergers and/or acquisitions, and strategies for addressing system problems that occurred during system outages caused by summer heat waves. Utility industry executives sought to address issues associated with these major headlines by focusing on improving operational excellence, keying on operating cost reductions, improving network infrastructure and infrastructure asset management, reallocating key financial and human resources, and improving or establishing trusted-provider relationships with their customers. Underpinning these key business issues was a focus on charting the course of organizations to move past Y2K issues by architecting the technology-enabled energy delivery organizations of the new millennium.
Utility Industry Issues, Practices and Challenges
Deregulation and growing competition are driving utilities to enhance the business of energy delivery as a means to improve customer satisfaction and confidence, as well as shareholder value. Technology investments are receiving increased scrutiny with heightened focus on IT system-related business cases including assessments of net present value, improved rates of IT system return, and overall shorter IT system deployment times. Increased outsourcing of IT services is frequently being viewed as a cost-effective alternative to internal development, installation, and deployment of state-of-the-art business solutions. Configurable best-in-class solutions are beginning to drive productivity improvements associated with optimized work processes. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are helping utilities with maintenance of financial and human resources, materials management, continuing property record management, asset management, billing, and customer information management, although they are to a lesser extent enhancing the day-to-day business of energy delivery.
Energy Delivery IT Systems in the 1990s
In the 1990s, IT organizations in most utilities oversaw internal system development, implementation, deployment and maintenance. IT and energy delivery organizations frequently debated the appropriateness, cost and timeliness of major IT projects and solutions. In most cases, 1990s energy delivery IT systems were architected and developed to support legacy business processes that were never reengineered in the transformation from manual to IT-assisted processes.
Most medium and large utilities implemented nonintegrated 1990s and prior generation energy delivery IT systems to support numerous key business functions. Examples included drafting and mapping of facility assets, short and long duration work management, distribution and transmission system planning, trouble call handling, and system outage handling and restoration. Many of these systems were built and implemented as custom-developed, silo systems. Needs for operational energy delivery data to support reliability analysis, regulatory reporting, maintenance management, customer service, sales, marketing, and other applications have frequently gone unmet or have been laborious, overly time-consuming activities.
Year 2000 Utiltiy Technology Approaches
As we begin the new millennium, increasing numbers of utilities are focused on the reengineering of business processes to support operational, engineering and maintenance activities across existing or merged organizational boundaries. Today, process reengineering almost always precedes the consolidation of energy delivery systems across these organizations, such that optimized work processes are defined as a requirements baseline for new energy delivery IT systems. Many major technology advances are affecting the business-appropriateness and the time required to complete energy delivery systems delivery and deployment. Key technology advances include software component engineering (based on the Component Object Model (COM), the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) and Enterprise Java Beans), two- or three-tier client/server architectures, streamlined software engineering methodologies, and object relational database management technology that enables creation, storage, and maintenance of energy delivery objects having spatial and nonspatial attributes. Cross-functional applications, such as integrated Geographic Information System (GIS)- and work-management-system-based graphical work design, optimize the reengineered energy delivery work design process and associated data creation, management, and maintenance.
In this post-Y2K IT investment era, investments in energy delivery IT systems are increasingly focused on off-the-shelf products and solutions that provide visual and Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE)-driven configuration environments. Increasingly functional and more easily configurable systems significantly lessen the need for utilities to maintain staffs of highly trained software developers. In addition, many of these recent major technology advances readily provide enhanced support for energy delivery business processes and improvements in software ease of use.
Energy Delivery Resource Planning (EDRP) processes and systems are increasingly better defined at this point. EDRP along with back-office ERP systems integration, as depicted in Figure 1, defines the key operations, engineering, and maintenance business processes and IT systems required to support a transmission- and distribution-focused energy delivery organization. Vendors of today’s energy delivery technologies recognize the need to refocus their product capabilities toward providing improved support for process-driven integration, as depicted in Figure 2.
Figure 1. Energy Delivery Resource Planning (EDRP) and ERP integration.
Most integrated business processes at this juncture are enabled by point-to-point, tightly coupled integrations. Tightly coupled interfaces vary widely based upon products, related technology, and related architecture. Tightly coupled interfaces range from data to application levels of integration. An example integration is the integration of a GIS and an outage management system (OMS). Typically, OMS technology requires some form of network model, landbase model, address information, and customer to transformer relationship from GIS. Providing these models and information to OMS technology today typically requires a GIS-OMS data interface that can vary from a translator/file conversion interface to a database table interface. The OMS requires a model-appropriate, sometimes format-specific, and possibly generalized network and landbase model. The network object model may likely include real world objects and state that support this integration. These integrations could be enabled by stored procedures, APIs that directly access a geospatial database or direct calls to a geospatial system depending upon customer, and peer product requirements.
Figure 2. Energy delivery process and technology convergence.
Future Energy Delivery and Utility IT Design and Strategies
Looking toward the future, the transmission and distribution-focused energy delivery IT systems architecture will evolve to include embedded geospatial information technology platforms that support the creation, management, and maintenance of a geospatially oriented facility asset registry. As-built and as-operated energy network object models, resource object models, work object models, message-oriented, object services-driven middleware with XML-based interfaces, and embedded or integrated workflow technology that enables IT support for business process models, business process automation, and business process workflow monitoring will comprise the overall energy delivery integration framework.
To better support EDRP-ERP integration, loosely coupled interfaces will be based on an EDRP-ERP integration-focused object model and middleware technology along with business process automation and workflow technology. Leading middleware technology vendors will provide publish- and subscribe-aware messaging backbones, tools for business process automation, Internet-based communication for integration of internal and external processes, prebuilt interfaces for application integration, real-time integration, and workflow analysis. The focus of this evolving software technology industry will continue to shift from ERP-focused enterprise application integration to e-commerce enabling business-to-business and/or business-to-customer integration.
Another focus of future energy delivery IT design will be Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. CRM is of increasing interest in the competitive marketplace, as a series of best practices, tools, and technologies that are designed to support all energy delivery customer-related interactions. Typical CRM capabilities will include customer service, customer support, customer retention, sales, marketing, and other front-office functions. As EDRP, ERP, and CRM become integrated as a complete IT framework across the front office, operations, engineering and maintenance, and the back office, energy delivery business-to-customer and energy delivery business-to-business processes can be supported via the Internet.
Evolution of contemporary energy delivery technology architectures to Internet-ready architectures that are enabled by distributed versions of COM, CORBA and other distributed object framework specifications is of paramount importance to achieve this envisioned level of integration. Integration of these environments between businesses across the Internet or between a business and customer enabled by the Internet will drive transmission and distribution-oriented e-business. Examples of potential future energy delivery e-business interactions include just-in-time energy supply management, on-line account and service request management, and on-line sales and marketing of new utility-provided products and services.
Conclusioins
This paper reviews the recent and forecasted evolution of energy delivery IT systems design and strategies. Looking back from a 2005 vantage point, the energy delivery business, driven by mergers, acquisitions, shareholder value, customer satisfaction, deregulation and other market issues, and associated IT approaches will progressively evolve from modestly integrated IT environments that support preautomation processes to integrated processes and supporting technologies that transcend businesses and customers that are connected by the Internet. By 2005, the integration of EDRP with ERP and CRM will enable support of integrated internal and external energy delivery business processes. These processes will be integrated through the use of enterprise-scale, common object models, evolved energy delivery product architectures, message-oriented middleware technology, and best practices business process-enabling workflow modeling and analysis technology.
Utility Industry Issues, Practices and Challenges
Deregulation and growing competition are driving utilities to enhance the business of energy delivery as a means to improve customer satisfaction and confidence, as well as shareholder value. Technology investments are receiving increased scrutiny with heightened focus on IT system-related business cases including assessments of net present value, improved rates of IT system return, and overall shorter IT system deployment times. Increased outsourcing of IT services is frequently being viewed as a cost-effective alternative to internal development, installation, and deployment of state-of-the-art business solutions. Configurable best-in-class solutions are beginning to drive productivity improvements associated with optimized work processes. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are helping utilities with maintenance of financial and human resources, materials management, continuing property record management, asset management, billing, and customer information management, although they are to a lesser extent enhancing the day-to-day business of energy delivery.
Energy Delivery IT Systems in the 1990s
In the 1990s, IT organizations in most utilities oversaw internal system development, implementation, deployment and maintenance. IT and energy delivery organizations frequently debated the appropriateness, cost and timeliness of major IT projects and solutions. In most cases, 1990s energy delivery IT systems were architected and developed to support legacy business processes that were never reengineered in the transformation from manual to IT-assisted processes.
Most medium and large utilities implemented nonintegrated 1990s and prior generation energy delivery IT systems to support numerous key business functions. Examples included drafting and mapping of facility assets, short and long duration work management, distribution and transmission system planning, trouble call handling, and system outage handling and restoration. Many of these systems were built and implemented as custom-developed, silo systems. Needs for operational energy delivery data to support reliability analysis, regulatory reporting, maintenance management, customer service, sales, marketing, and other applications have frequently gone unmet or have been laborious, overly time-consuming activities.
Year 2000 Utiltiy Technology Approaches
As we begin the new millennium, increasing numbers of utilities are focused on the reengineering of business processes to support operational, engineering and maintenance activities across existing or merged organizational boundaries. Today, process reengineering almost always precedes the consolidation of energy delivery systems across these organizations, such that optimized work processes are defined as a requirements baseline for new energy delivery IT systems. Many major technology advances are affecting the business-appropriateness and the time required to complete energy delivery systems delivery and deployment. Key technology advances include software component engineering (based on the Component Object Model (COM), the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) and Enterprise Java Beans), two- or three-tier client/server architectures, streamlined software engineering methodologies, and object relational database management technology that enables creation, storage, and maintenance of energy delivery objects having spatial and nonspatial attributes. Cross-functional applications, such as integrated Geographic Information System (GIS)- and work-management-system-based graphical work design, optimize the reengineered energy delivery work design process and associated data creation, management, and maintenance.
In this post-Y2K IT investment era, investments in energy delivery IT systems are increasingly focused on off-the-shelf products and solutions that provide visual and Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE)-driven configuration environments. Increasingly functional and more easily configurable systems significantly lessen the need for utilities to maintain staffs of highly trained software developers. In addition, many of these recent major technology advances readily provide enhanced support for energy delivery business processes and improvements in software ease of use.
Energy Delivery Resource Planning (EDRP) processes and systems are increasingly better defined at this point. EDRP along with back-office ERP systems integration, as depicted in Figure 1, defines the key operations, engineering, and maintenance business processes and IT systems required to support a transmission- and distribution-focused energy delivery organization. Vendors of today’s energy delivery technologies recognize the need to refocus their product capabilities toward providing improved support for process-driven integration, as depicted in Figure 2.
Figure 1. Energy Delivery Resource Planning (EDRP) and ERP integration.
Most integrated business processes at this juncture are enabled by point-to-point, tightly coupled integrations. Tightly coupled interfaces vary widely based upon products, related technology, and related architecture. Tightly coupled interfaces range from data to application levels of integration. An example integration is the integration of a GIS and an outage management system (OMS). Typically, OMS technology requires some form of network model, landbase model, address information, and customer to transformer relationship from GIS. Providing these models and information to OMS technology today typically requires a GIS-OMS data interface that can vary from a translator/file conversion interface to a database table interface. The OMS requires a model-appropriate, sometimes format-specific, and possibly generalized network and landbase model. The network object model may likely include real world objects and state that support this integration. These integrations could be enabled by stored procedures, APIs that directly access a geospatial database or direct calls to a geospatial system depending upon customer, and peer product requirements.
Figure 2. Energy delivery process and technology convergence.
Future Energy Delivery and Utility IT Design and Strategies
Looking toward the future, the transmission and distribution-focused energy delivery IT systems architecture will evolve to include embedded geospatial information technology platforms that support the creation, management, and maintenance of a geospatially oriented facility asset registry. As-built and as-operated energy network object models, resource object models, work object models, message-oriented, object services-driven middleware with XML-based interfaces, and embedded or integrated workflow technology that enables IT support for business process models, business process automation, and business process workflow monitoring will comprise the overall energy delivery integration framework.
To better support EDRP-ERP integration, loosely coupled interfaces will be based on an EDRP-ERP integration-focused object model and middleware technology along with business process automation and workflow technology. Leading middleware technology vendors will provide publish- and subscribe-aware messaging backbones, tools for business process automation, Internet-based communication for integration of internal and external processes, prebuilt interfaces for application integration, real-time integration, and workflow analysis. The focus of this evolving software technology industry will continue to shift from ERP-focused enterprise application integration to e-commerce enabling business-to-business and/or business-to-customer integration.
Another focus of future energy delivery IT design will be Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. CRM is of increasing interest in the competitive marketplace, as a series of best practices, tools, and technologies that are designed to support all energy delivery customer-related interactions. Typical CRM capabilities will include customer service, customer support, customer retention, sales, marketing, and other front-office functions. As EDRP, ERP, and CRM become integrated as a complete IT framework across the front office, operations, engineering and maintenance, and the back office, energy delivery business-to-customer and energy delivery business-to-business processes can be supported via the Internet.
Evolution of contemporary energy delivery technology architectures to Internet-ready architectures that are enabled by distributed versions of COM, CORBA and other distributed object framework specifications is of paramount importance to achieve this envisioned level of integration. Integration of these environments between businesses across the Internet or between a business and customer enabled by the Internet will drive transmission and distribution-oriented e-business. Examples of potential future energy delivery e-business interactions include just-in-time energy supply management, on-line account and service request management, and on-line sales and marketing of new utility-provided products and services.
Conclusioins
This paper reviews the recent and forecasted evolution of energy delivery IT systems design and strategies. Looking back from a 2005 vantage point, the energy delivery business, driven by mergers, acquisitions, shareholder value, customer satisfaction, deregulation and other market issues, and associated IT approaches will progressively evolve from modestly integrated IT environments that support preautomation processes to integrated processes and supporting technologies that transcend businesses and customers that are connected by the Internet. By 2005, the integration of EDRP with ERP and CRM will enable support of integrated internal and external energy delivery business processes. These processes will be integrated through the use of enterprise-scale, common object models, evolved energy delivery product architectures, message-oriented middleware technology, and best practices business process-enabling workflow modeling and analysis technology.