{"id":13396,"date":"2021-08-25T21:47:50","date_gmt":"2021-08-25T20:47:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.avolutionsoftware.com\/?p=13396"},"modified":"2023-05-25T23:18:38","modified_gmt":"2023-05-25T22:18:38","slug":"constructing-the-enterprise-digital-twin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.avolutionsoftware.com\/news\/constructing-the-enterprise-digital-twin\/","title":{"rendered":"Constructing the Enterprise Digital Twin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Business\u00a0models need\u00a0to be flexible if they\u00a0a<\/span>re to\u00a0<\/span>acc<\/span>ommodate\u00a0<\/span>acute shocks and chronic stresses\u00a0as well as\u00a0process changes,\u00a0<\/span>mindset and\u00a0<\/span>cultural<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>shifts.<\/span> To achieve this, Gartner recommends organizations implement what they refer to as the “Composable Enterprise.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Gartner defines a Composable<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0Enterprise<\/span><\/b>\u00a0as \u201c<\/span>an adaptive technology strategy that enables<\/span><\/i>\u00a0the foundational and operational digital capabilities for an\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Enterprise<\/span><\/i>\u00a0to keep up with the pace of business change<\/span><\/i>.\u201d[i]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

W<\/span>e can think of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the composable enterprise<\/span>\u00a0in terms of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u2018<\/span>comp<\/span><\/i>osable applications\u2019<\/span><\/i>\u00a0and \u2018<\/span>software platforms\u2019<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>that\u00a0<\/span>can be structured,\u00a0<\/span>swapped,<\/span>\u00a0and recomb<\/span>ined to form a set of self-contained digital capabilities.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To achieve this vision<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>organiz<\/span>ations<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>need to<\/span>\u00a0transform the Enterprise to d<\/span>r<\/span>ive\u00a0<\/span>standard<\/span>i<\/span>z<\/span>ation\u00a0<\/span>and integration across all areas of the business<\/span>. They need to understand<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>how\u00a0<\/span>the elements of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>People<\/span><\/b>,\u00a0<\/span>Processes<\/span><\/b>,\u00a0<\/span>Data<\/span><\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Technology<\/span><\/b>\u00a0interact.<\/span>\u00a0The<\/span>y<\/span>\u00a0need to answer<\/span>\u00a0such questions as:\u00a0<\/span>Where are we today? And where do we need to be?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One way to accomplish this is to create what\u2019s referred to as an\u00a0<\/span>Enterprise Digital Twin<\/span><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>According to\u00a0<\/span>Gartner,<\/span>\u00a0\u201c<\/span>Digital twins<\/span><\/i>\u00a0are designed to\u00a0<\/span><\/i>optimi<\/span><\/i>z<\/span><\/i>e the operation of assets or business decisions about<\/span><\/i>\u00a0them, including improved maintenance, upgrades, repairs and\u00a0<\/span><\/i>operation of the actual object<\/span><\/i>.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Composable Enterprise in Practice<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One organization <\/span>which<\/span>\u00a0has been successful in\u00a0<\/span>addressing<\/span>\u00a0these challenges is the Canadian integrated energy company S<\/span>uncor<\/span>\u00a0Energy<\/span>\u00a9<\/span>. \u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

They are using ABACUS<\/a> to support them as they change the way they do business, including reducing carbon intensity, reduc<\/span>ing<\/span>\u00a0costs,\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>diversify<\/span>ing\u00a0<\/span>energy holdings.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In their 2021 Digital\u00a0<\/span>Enterprise Architecture Summit presentation, Suncor <\/span>talk about ABACUS as their “planning system” and have used the ABACUS API to\u00a0<\/span>integrat<\/span>e day-to-day operational information.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

From this, they have gone on to construct a digital twin of their enterprise. This model allows the team\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0capture\u00a0the value streams to be tracked and optimized,<\/span>\u00a0and the physical assets, such as production materials, production facilities, that are tied to these value chain segments.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Suncor<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Modeling Physical Assets as part of Enterprise Architecture<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Suncor team have\u00a0<\/span>been able to model out the areas within each of these segments: modeling <\/span>physical\u00a0<\/strong>assets, people and personas<\/strong>, integrations<\/strong> and connecting data and processes<\/strong>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As Suncor Portfolio Architect Jeff Rickard notes: <\/span>\u201c<\/span>ABACUS has allowed us to build on the database concepts and added principles of the graph database, conceptualizing information as components and connections. Graph database concepts have allowed us to describe the entities and the relationships between those entities, which is a core requirement of the Enterprise Digital Twin.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>Suncor leveraged\u00a0<\/span><\/i>Archimate<\/span><\/i>, to describe business structures, actions and the entire value chain<\/span><\/i>\u201d and by \u201cleveraging\u201d this with the ABACUS toolset \u201c<\/span>Suncor could create a common language across the architectural domains and in the business itself.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As the projects execute and the solution architects build out their\u00a0<\/span>models,<\/span>\u00a0they can work closely with organi<\/span>zational change management to ensure that\u00a0the planned changes are aligned and positioned for success. This also allows them to identify variations in demand, interdependencies and impacts as situations change and plans need to be shifted.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rickard also provides a summary of\u00a0<\/span>B<\/span><\/b>est\u00a0<\/span><\/b>P<\/span><\/b>ractices\u00a0<\/span><\/b>for<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/b>C<\/span><\/b>onstructing a<\/span><\/b>n\u00a0<\/span><\/b>E<\/span><\/b>ffective Enterprise Digital Twin<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n