References architectures for enterprise integration

The dynamic and competitive enterprise environment requires enterprises to ensure the highest pro®t from their resources, integrating them to work together in obtaining the enterprises objectives. The project of design and implementation of an Integrating Enterprise System, is an extremely complex project that involves di€erent technological, human and organisational elements. For this purpose several di€erent reference architectures (RA) have been proposed. However, this area of research is not yet totally satisfactory because these methods may still be improved. It is necessary to adapt the di€erent techniques to the concrete needs of each type of enterprise activity. In addition, new methods enabling the integration of several enterprises (called virtual enterprises) must be developed and their use must be popularized through examples and application experiences. This paper shows the results of the research project in RA for enterprise integration of the IRIS group from the University Jaume I of Castell on. Mainly, it is a framework consisting of a step by step methodology, reference models and a set of supporting tools, which will allow the creation of an Integrated Enterprise. Some of the results obtained from the applications in di€erent enterprises are also shown. 1. The new enterprise action framework Changes in the world economic environment, along with to the development of new technologies, especially in the information ®eld, con®gure a `new action frame-work' for the enterprise. This is one in which we go from old endeavour associated with positions in local markets to a `maximally competitive' global market. This forces us to constantly modify the culture, the mode of operating and the internal organization structures of the company, in order to compete and survive in this environment. The new highly dynamic action framework is characterized mainly by fourèxternal strengths (see Fig. 1) that directly a€ect the competitiveness of the enterprise (Vernadat, 1994): 1. thèworld-wide extension of the market', which forces the enterprise to extend and enlarge its action radius, and at the same time introduces new competitors in its traditional in¯uence area (Brown and Sack-ett, 1994); 2. the increasing`client requirements' which forces the enterprises to manufacture with a higher emphasis on quality; on customizing demand; on o€ering a better service and on diminishing costs; 3. thètechnological development', which provides tremendous opportunities to improve the enterprises' performance; 4. thèenvironmental impact' which will result in the short and medium term in restrictions imposed by law, which will force the enterprises to modify their …