In part 1 of the series, we reviewed some gaps in the Systems Integration solutions and the need to act.
When you think about Systems Integrations, what are the main requirements which come to your mind -
How soon can we start to utilise the Integrations?
What is the cost of configuring the Integrations?
Will there be a return on investment compared to the cost of running manual processes?
What is the price of maintaining the Integrations?
Who can support the ongoing day-to-day work for the Integrations?
How easy will it be for your partner systems to come on board and utilise these Integrations?
What kind of performance can we expect from these Integrations?
Do we get to reuse some of these Integrations and have better value for money?
Do we have a short-term fix or look for a more strategic Integration solution as an investment for long-term capability?
What is the risk associated with the Integration solution availability and continuous support from the Vendor?
Does the Integration solution align with any industry standards?
Would we have interoperability with other System Integration toolkits?
Do we have any pre-built Integrations, or do we need to start from a blank page?
Is the solution easy for Developers to configure and for Consumers to use concerning the target Business goals?
Do we need to spend much effort to document these APIs?
Can I quickly and accurately estimate the time and cost for any enhancement/configuration?
Will the data be secured during transmission, and will data integrity be maintained?
Does the Integration solution allow encrypted data transmission?
Is the Integration solution endorsed by the system vendor?
Do we break any support or license agreement with the system vendor while using other Integration solutions?
Will the Integration solution allow the external systems to keep up to date with changes in TRIRIGA in real time?
Do I need to change the underlying computing environment to enable these integrations?
Will the solution work in a SaaS or TAS environment?
As systems and solutions evolve and improve and the Users expect enhanced ad richer interactions, can my Integration team keep up with the demand for new data and integrations?
While looking at potential solutions, we have been brainstorming these issues and thinking about innovative ways to solve these problems and provide answers to these questions. With multiple proofs-of-concept, architectural re-factoring, re-designing, and re-coding, we went through numerous iterations of the API solution to get to where we are.
With some focus over the last two years, we constructed an intuitive solution boasting an impressive feature list.
We created the "ExpressConnect" solution to solve the real-world challenges of Systems Integration, reduce the burden of establishing complex data exchanges, and establish a proper foundation for future data exchange scenarios.
With many more features on the roadmap, we are getting ready to make our ExpressConnect REST API solution available early next year (2023).
The ExpressConnect solution will allow the Customers to focus on the business changes and process optimisation without worrying about the bare necessities like exchanging data between multiple systems within or outside their Organisation. With the basics covered, Organisations can focus on creating high-value Business Solutions by relying on a fast, reliable and extensible data exchange framework like ExpressConnect.
Fig 1: ExpressConnect Main solution components
The complete ExpressConnect solution consists of three core components:
ExpressAPI - The ExpressAPI exposes REST API endpoints aligned with the OpenAPI principles.
ExpressEvent - The ExpressEvent introduces an event framework that allows TRIRIGA to transmit events to externally connected systems in real time.
ExpressAdaptor – The ExpressAdaptor can dynamically connect to the IBM AppConnect platform to extend the API scope and end-to-end use cases. (roadmap item)
ExpressConnect sits on top of the TRIRIGA Platform and the Application. Therefore, we can deploy and enable these capabilities through the Object Migration (OM) process.
Future enhancements to the ExpressConnect solution are delivered through the OM process, meaning the ExpressConnect can be promoted through environments using the exact mechanism as your existing TRIRIGA configurations.
We can utilise the solution for On-premise, SaaS or Application Suite set-up.
Fig 2: Extending ExpressConnect with connections to Integration toolkits or data stores
The ExpressConnect Integration solution is extendible. You could extend the ExpressConnect solution by connecting to any existing Organisation level Integration middleware solutions or other Integration toolkits utilised by your Organisation or Partner external systems. This will also help align and comply with Organisation compliance policies.
The ExpressAdaptor solution on the roadmap will provide a native connection to IBM AppConnect Enterprise and is currently targeted for 3Q23. Connectivity to many other Integration solutions (including AppConnect) can be achieved based on OpenAPI interoperability.
IBM owns the AppConnect Enterprise tool and related trademarks. We won't be able to dive into AppConnect capabilities here, and you should visit the link mentioned here and explore the solution externally. We can say that AppConnect is a capable and versatile Systems Integration tool, and it features multiple pre-built Adaptors. The goal for the ExpressAdaptor is to become part of the AppConnect connector eco-system, extend the potential for data exchange, and realise many creative Integration options.
In part 3, we cover the ExpressAPI Run-time Components in more detail.
Meanwhile, if you need to discuss anything, don't hesitate to contact us through this link.
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