EAI in the real world
As organisations have grown, so has the need to deploy multiple applications and platforms to fulfil their business needs. For example, accounting has its own systems, as does finance, sales and manufacturing. Most applications are run independently with little or no integration.
Integration projects have focused on the development of interfaces for specific applications to meet an immediate business need. Each integration project is usually conducted in isolation, essentially reinventing the wheel each time. The result is considerable costs due to lack of commonality and the increased effort required to maintain unrelated interfaces.
Louder than ever, organisations were asking “How can we bring disparate systems back under control?"
To solve such issues Intergen has utilised the considerable advantages of Microsoft BizTalk Server successfully across projects in the private and public sectors. Projects have included the integration of disparate internal systems into a common XML driven standard, through to the automation of a previously manual paper driven business process.
BizTalk allows organisations to connect disparate systems in a common framework eliminating the traditional problems of point to point interfaces. Using standards like electronic data interchange (EDI), XML, and SOAP, BizTalk Server ensures flexibility and interoperability with any business partner regardless of their choice of application, platform, or transport.
For example, when using BizTalk a complex process such as fulfilling a purchase order can be automated. The PO must be received and processed – often requiring information to be passed between a number of systems including inventory, financial and CRM. BizTalk can bind these systems together, controlling the entire process from PO receipt to inventory, financial and CRM updates, through to invoice.
Previously separate interfaces would have existed between each system, unrelated to a particular order. BizTalk enables a process such as purchase order and invoice generation to be managed as a single entity allowing an organisation access to real-time data on the progress of orders.
Microsoft BizTalk Server enables businesses to achieve application integration through five key processes: document transport and routing, data transformation, application integration, process automation, and scalability and manageability services. Each process is achieved through receive functions, channels, ports, schedules and tools.
Receive Functions –monitor HTTP, file locations and MSMQ message queues for files to be submitted to BizTalk.
Channels - modify the structure of documents, manage encryption, digital signatures and logging. Also ensure incoming documents adhere to a formal specification and can transform them to meet the target system requirements.
Ports - send documents to schedules, components or to external organiszations and trading partners. Many third party providers have developed adapters that allow BizTalk to communicate natively.
Schedules - orchestrate business processes by receiving documents from a messaging port then passing them to COM components, other BizTalk Server messaging channels, or XML Web services.
BizTalk offers "once only" delivery of documents, comprehensive document tracking, and logging and support for failover clustering to ensure documents are delivered to their destination and are not ‘lost’ in the process. It supports the latest security features available today, including public key infrastructure (PKI), multipurpose Internet mail extensions (MIME), secure/multipurpose Internet mail extensions (S/MIME), digital signatures and more, to ensure the security of data.
Think of Microsoft BizTalk as the glue that binds the enterprise. Biztalk will make it possible for you to easily integrate internal products and technologies, securely connect with business partners over the Internet, and rapidly automate your business processes.
More information about Biztalk can be found at Microsoft's BizTalk website.