DGetting the Most Out of Data: The Key to Successful Electrical Utility Application Integration
With any approach to correcting errors, if procedures are not put in place to keep the data
correct, then the effort will be in vain as the data will quickly become incorrect and thus
waste resources. One approach involves performing a complete field audit. This
approach is a very effective. It is also expensive. In some cases, this approach cannot be
avoided. Another approach involves the implementation of advanced data gateways to
limit the amount of fielding required. Advanced data gateways detect errors,
automatically correct many of the errors, provide reports on what was fixed, and provide
the tools for highlighting and fixing the remaining errors that cannot be automatically
corrected. This approach allows the utility to target the areas that need to be fielded, thus
reducing the overall expense.
Data/Application Integration Strategies
Three strategies for integrating applications come immediately to mind: Point-to-point,
bus, and hub-and-spoke architectures. Point-to-point interfaces are common throughout
the industry. They can be set up in either a batch or a transaction-based mode. They can
be implemented as custom interfaces, gateways, by embedding components using COM
technology, or by a combination of these technologies. There are a variety of
information-bus technologies on the market from TIBCO, Vitria, IBM and others. They
offer an excellent means to transport data from one application to another if you assume
the data is accurate to start with. Bus architectures hide the messaging. Technology from
SISCO takes the bus architecture for utilities one step further through the utilization of a
Common Information Model (CIM) that has been defined for transmission and is well on
its way for distribution asset information. However, data validation for the target systems
cannot be completely addressed by this approach. Many utilities are finding their source
system data is not accurate enough to support their OSS and have turned to gateway
technology to maximize the performance of their applications.
Each approach has advantages and disadvantages. I will not debate the merits of these
architectures. Instead, I will focus my attention on the need for accurate data regardless
of the transport mechanism or integration architecture. For each architecture alternative,
an interface or adapter is required. This interface or adapter can either be a simple
translation mechanism or an advanced data gateway.
A gateway, configured to do more than simply transport data, is a unique technology that
offers several advantages over an application interface. Advanced gateways focus on the
data content needed by target applications. They provide not only a mechanism to fix
data ambiguities and deliver the correct data in the exact format needed by the target
application, but also the ability to return corrected information back to the data source or
sources. Gateways for OSS applications have a state-of-the-art geospatial data viewing
& editing environment, advanced data modeling to handle any target application and
standard representations like the CIM, and pre-configured data exports including a direct
link to message bus data transport technologies. They are compatible with any geospatial
source.
Sophisticated gateways provide a means to integrate data from a variety of source
systems for delivery to specific target systems. Source systems contain data needed by
your target system. However, typically, the data is not in the form or of the high quality
required by the target system to operate at its full potential. Gateways provide automated
routines (mini-applications) that not only indicate where the problems are, but also
correct many of the problems automatically. This technology also automatically
integrates, constructs and validates the data attributes and relationships needed by
specific target systems. In addition to the automated features, a high-performance
graphical user interface for data viewing and editing fast and easy correction of any
problems requiring operator attention. Making the process “fast and easy” requires an
extensive set of flexible tools. For example, when a “verify” routine has been executed, a
list of discrepancies is displayed. When the user selects one of the discrepancies, the user
interface automatically navigates to the highlighted object in question, provides a
description of what is wrong and opens the tool needed to fix the problem. Once the
simple operation to correct the situation is performed, a re-verify can be executed to
make sure the problem has been corrected.
