WHALES: a Web-based Collaborative Environment
for Concurrent Project life-cycle Management in
Networked Enterprises
Davide Gazzotti1, Mauro Felice1, Paolo Paganelli1, Richard Stevens1
1
Gruppo Formula SpA, Via Matteotti,5 40055 Villanova di Castenaso (BO), Italy,
{davide.gazzotti, mauro.felice, paolo.paganelli, richard.stevens}@formula.it
Abstract
The goal of the project "Web linking Heterogeneous Applications for Large scale Engineering and Services" (WHALES – IST – 99/12538) is to provide a planning and collaborative management infrastructure for complex distributed organizations working as virtual
enterprises on large scale projects. The WHALES architecture is a multi-tired, multilayered collaboration system which easily integrates with existing applications that execute
the intra-company processes at each node in a network of enterprises. WHALES isn't intended to replace existing applications within an enterprise, but functionally links the different companies involved in the project to support and enhance the inter-company processes that take place in such project management scenarios.
WHALES offers a web-based project environment and a rich set of functionalities that
improve virtual organizations, in order to achieve faster and most effective results in the
whole project life-cycle.
The system addresses the C-Commerce1 market arena, which is considered as one of the
most promising e-business application fields for enterprise value-chain development.
Introduction
WHALES is a European research project made up of members across Europe
which was envisioned to deal with the unique and critical problems that arise during large-scale engineering and one of a kind production projects. The WHALES
project has developed a web based infrastructure and tools to deal with the complexity of time constraints, resources and activities which are planned, synchronised and monitored in the course of these types of projects. The system is designed to assist interactions and visibility in distributed organisation which span
several companies and involve a multiplicity of actors and competencies.
WHALES is designed to deal with the particular difficulties placed on actors when
they are in different geographic or distinct enterprises during the execution of con1
C-Commerce, which is the abbreviation for Collaborative Commerce, is extensively
treated in the chapter "e-business scenarios" of this paper
current of tasks and assignments that are typical of complex distributed projects. It
is intended specifically for complex development where product and process standardisation is lacking.
These types of large scale and one-of a-kind engineering project typically present a series of problems for project management teams which include strict time
constraints, complex interdependent milestones and dangerous critical-path
dependencies. WHALES deals with these problems while reducing contingency
risks and revenue shortfall caused by the elevated uncertainty which is intrinsic in
re-planning and re-alignment of activities frequently rescheduled during these
types of projects. The WHALES system has been designed to assist project managers during the complicated budgeting process.
In these scenarios, projects are rarely carried out within the walls of a single organisation. More often a large prime contractor, will out-sources specific components and services to smaller firms. In these cases a virtual enterprise is formed
based upon several forms of sub-contracting. WHALES interconnects and gives
visibility to these networks of individual companies that provide Design, Development, Manufacturing and Distribution during the course of a project.
The objective of WHALES is therefore to provide a planning and management
infrastructure for complex distributed organisations working together on large
scale projects. It is specifically designed for those cases where extensive material
and human resource investments as well as simultaneous independent manufacturing and design activities take place.
WHALES can therefore be seen as applicable to the industrial domains involved in:
• One-of-a-kind manufacturing;
• Industrial and Civil Engineering;
• Development and integration of complex software systems.
WHALES approach
Networked organisation
The WHALES architecture, as well as data structures and functions developed in
the system, is oriented to support collaboration in a network of project sites and
suppliers, as shown in the following figure:
Fig. 1. The WHALES Networked approach
User access to the WHALES system is Workflow-driven, although a high level of
configurability makes it very flexible in collaborative scenarios. In this way interaction between project participants takes place according to well-defined processes, based on the project accountability and established co-operation agreements.
Workflow modelling and automation tools are included, supporting management of both:
− Project management processes that are common to all projects, like planning
and monitoring.
− Product-oriented processes that vary by application area, like design, manufacturing and installation.
WHALES is not intended to manage normal internal enterprise processes, replacing existing applications in the different companies (like ERP – Enterprise
Resource Planning, PDM – Product Data Management, RM – Resource Management). Instead these heterogeneous and local applications can be integrated with
WHALES (for example using XML or APIs) in order to automate the sharing of
data coming from the different network nodes.
To support project accounting and monitoring in distributed organizations, the
WHALES system is able to:
− Capture and normalize project accounting data from a variety of sources, enterprise functions and company domains;
− Maintain an updated project repository based on this data, accessible to authorized users via a number of aggregate and detailed views.
Management by projects
Traditional project Management techniques and tools are typically unaware of organisational constraints, since they focus on each individual project as a selfcontained entity. For the same reason, there are no structured links between project management tools and project-relevant data maintained by other enterprise
applications like ERP systems and Human resources systems.
WHALES supports management of projects in an organisation-aware software
environment. This means contemporaneously viewing:
1. Processes and data for a specific project;
2. Processes and data for several projects grouped by companies, organisation
units, and people involved. This approach can be defined as Management by
Projects.
Usually Project Management applications provide the first type of functionalities, due to their project-centric approach; conversely Human Resources and ERP
systems are enterprise-centric applications, viewing operations from an enterprise
organisation perspective (e.g., by company – department – cost centre). WHALES
merges both point of view operating from a project perspective and, at the same
time, integrating with ERP and HR packages for organisation structure, operations
status and accounting data, as shown in the following figure:
Fig. 2. The integrated management by projects approach of WHALES
Project Network and Supply Chain
The project organisation and structure can have networked enterprise characteristics, however it is different from what is commonly intended as a “Supply Chain”.
Indeed, the term Supply Chain is usually associated to physical goods being transferred between suppliers, manufacturers and distributors up to final customer delivery. What makes them a “Chain” is direct linkage of a product item demand at
the “receiver” node to availability or planned production of the same item at the
“supplier” node. This requires:
− Meaningfully Coded products, i.e., items resulting from standard or configurable bill of materials;
− Production/shipment plans and demand requirements, both at the supplier and
receiver node.
Target WHALES users rarely meet both conditions, since:
− The final products in one-of-a-kind production are not specified at the time of
the customer's order. In these cases, design and construction specifications are
themselves part of the work under contract;
− Matching between production and demand plans at different nodes is not possible because demand for one-of-a-kind products cannot be forecast and handled
by planning engines.
However sometimes a traditional supply chain can represent part of the supply
side in the project network. This happens when one of the involved companies, in
order to realise the work under contract, acquires standard products from partners
organised in a traditional supply chain (see next Figure).
Project Network
Contractor
Customer
Engineering
subsidiary
Manuf. plant
Project site 1
Project site 2
Manuf. subcontractor
Traditional
Supply Chain
Equipment provider
Materials supplier
Fig. 3. Traditional Supply Chain in One-of-a-kind Production
These are typical "pull" supply chains since the supplies are always triggered
by the project activities requiring components. In these cases WHALES can be
viewed as a Supply Chain Execution application allowing material visibility and
order negotiation across the network nodes.
WHALES architecture
Logical Architecture
The WHALES logical network architecture is shown in Figure 4, where three different layers are identified:
• Work Network Structure (WNS);
• Work Accountability Structure (WRS);
• Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).
Fig. 4. WHALES Logical Architecture
The Work Network Structure (WNS) is the bottom layer of the WHALES infrastructure, crossing horizontally the functional silos at companies co-operating on
large-scale projects. At this level physical nodes are identified corresponding to
autonomous organisational units, and links are defined allowing integration of
data and co-operation between nodes. The WNS gives visibility on the project
network as a portfolio of assets that can be uniquely configured for each project,
in terms of:
− Nodes specialisation and capabilities, e.g., manufacturing, engineering, supply
of components or services, management of project activities;
− Resources provided according to capabilities, e.g., products, manufacturing
capacity, personnel, service manpower, equipment, with the corresponding cost
and usage rates, along with knowledge and documents in various formats;
− Availability data by resource type, e.g., current and planned stocks availability,
manufacturing calendars, employees schedule;
− Status of allocated resources to specific projects, e.g., job order, components
supply status, time sheets of involved employees;
− Links between nodes representing co-operation possibilities, e.g., the supply of
materials or services, workload sub-contracting in specific activities, and establishing the terms and conditions for co-operation.
The Work Accountability Structure (WAS) makes up the intermediate layer of
the WHALES infrastructure, representing the temporary, multi-site and multicompany organisation created to carry out one or more projects (virtual enterprise). The WAS groups and links nodes and individuals accessible through the
WNS, to create a project-oriented structure specifically designed for the work to
be carried out, including:
− Nodes and nodes groups representing relevant project units, i.e., units occupying a specific position with reference to project planning, deployment and
monitoring activities;
− Roles played by project participants in each project unit, identified by
competencies and skill levels, and explicitly assigned to personnel units
identified in the WNS, including substitution alternatives and referees in the
chain of responsibility;
− Visibility rules to be applied for a specific unit or role, concerning access of
project-related data and knowledge at the unit node(s) and access to data from
other nodes through WNS links.
− Workflow model for the circulation of events and decision between units and
actors at all levels in the WAS, depending on the assigned responsibilities (e.g.,
budgeting) and co-operation foreseen between project units (e.g., revision of
project plans).
The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) corresponds to the highest layer of the
WHALES infrastructure, and represents a network-wise enhancement of WBS
implementations supported by traditional Project Planning tools. The WBS describes the project network objectives and achievements, in terms of:
− Project activities, their categories (e.g., manufacturing, services, management),
detail level (e.g., simple activities, clusters), dependencies (e.g., milestones,
time-related constraints), and alternatives;
− Input and output associated to each activity, i.e., products, components and services representing activity requisites or measurable results for WNS nodes;
− Resource requirements associated to each activity, mapped onto node resource
types (e.g., manpower categories, equipment, employees with proper knowledge and skills) for cost and availability evaluation, with indication of alternative resources;
− Planning details, including: project milestones and activity timings, allocation
of node resources and budget (e.g., cost and revenue estimations by project
unit), project planning status and revisions;
− Execution status for released or running activities, represented by time and
cost-based indicators, output produced, resource usage, referred to and compared with activity planning data.
Functional architecture
To support the outlined organisation model the WHALES network has developed
innovative software tools, according to the functional architecture scheme of Figure 5:
Work Breakdown Structure
Network
Data
Model
Work Accountability Structure
Work Network Structure
Workflow Management System
Web-based Project Environment
Human Job
Resourc Orders
PPC
Purch.
Finance
Control
Bids, Proposals,
Requirements
Local
Applications
Interfaces
Permanently
Connected
Nodes
Project Activities
& Results
Assignments,
Responsibility,
Visibility rights
Local
Users
Nodes resources
availability & status
Remote
Users
Workflow msgs.,
Events, Exceptions
Planning
& Budgeting
Monitoring &
Revenue analysis
Decision Support Tools
Fig. 5. WHALES functional architecture
The WHALES system architecture is centred on a Web-based Project Environment (WPE), a shared and integrated project management infrastructure that:
− Is based on web technologies, so as to be easily accessed by local users at network nodes (intranet access) and by remote users operating at decentralised
project sites (internet or extranet access);
− Provides uniform access to data and functionalities from heterogeneous
applications, both WHALES system components and local management and
planning tools at any network node;
− Implements protection for nodes data access: (i) for users of a node, visibility
rights are assigned and verified at logon time; (ii) between nodes, data are protected by a visibility mechanism allowing each node to assign access rights.
The WPE embeds process automation features provided by a proprietary Workflow Management System (WMS), based on XML and Microsoft® BizTalkTM 2
technology, that:
− Allows process-based interaction between the responsible actors at the involved
nodes, according to the roles, responsibilities and workflow model specified in
the WAS (e.g., exchange of bids and requirements in the project negotiation
phase, revision and approval cycle for project schedules and budgets);
− Notifies relevant events and exceptions to the appropriate actors in the project
network, depending on the event type and the action required (e.g., finding alternatives on resources shortage or equipment failure);
− Can be easily accessed and configured to realise higher-level functionalities, by
integrating workflow management with WHALES application data and Decision Support Sub-systems.
The WHALES organisation model is based on a common data infrastructure
provided by the Network Data Model (NDM), a database that:
− Maintains an updated and consistent representation of the project network from
each node point of view, representing all the other nodes which are visible and
with which it interchanges data;
− Aggregates and harmonises information from nodes local applications to realise
the WNS model, allowing for both detail and synthesis of physical nodes information, resources and activity status;
− Allows consistent manipulation of WNS data into higher-level WRS and WBS
models (e.g., allocation of project packages to different nodes for joint planning
and execution).
Alignment between the WHALES project network management and the internal node activities is provided by a set of Local Application Interfaces (LAI), that:
− Integrate data from sources selected from nodes (manufacturing, human resources, finance and accounting) into the WNS model, making them accessible
to other nodes for decision-making processes, e.g.: node materials, manpower
and equipments, related cost and availability, key personnel identification and
activity progress data;
− Wrap existing information system components, like ERP and PPC, to realise a
set of system and platform -independent objects (e.g., job order) with projectrelevant properties and events (e.g., job order completion); particular attention
is paid to integration of widespread ERP platforms;
2
In particular the Workflow Solution is based on the development of a thin software component on top of the XLANG-Scheduler (part of the BizTalk Orchestration Services)
workflow engine, in order to add collaborative workflow capabilities.
− Transfer network-level data and events to the node internal functions for local
processing, e.g.: MRP planning of material requirements associated to a project
activity, issuing and managing purchase orders for network-planned services or
components;
Two Decision Support Sub-systems (DSS) are included, respectively for:
1. Project Planning & Budgeting, supporting decision-makers in project conceptualisation and bid preparation, using: (i) project scheduling based on WBS activities, their resource and material requirements, time constraints, current and
planned resource availability at each node; (ii) generation, quantitative evaluation and comparison of alternatives concerning, e.g.: selection of the most appropriate suppliers and sub-contractors, workload allocation on critical resources and equipments; (iii) budget creation based on project schedule,
resource costs, rules for budget allocation and expense calculation on WRS entities.
2. Project Monitoring & Revenue Analysis, supporting project and site managers
in evaluating activity progress, identifying risk elements and launching contingency actions, using: (i) real-time activities monitoring, based on significant
time, cost and performance indicators derived from node data compared with
planned values; (ii) profitability analysis by project, projects groups and WRS
units, based on cash-flow profiles and planned vs. actual costs estimations; (iii)
“what if” scenarios evaluation, to simulate both deterministic and causal factors
effects on the project plan.
Technical Architecture
The WHALES Network Model architecture is based on a three-tier model, where
the presentation, business and data access layers are logically separated, see Figure 6:
Business Objects Tier
Presentation Tier
Internet Explorer
Pocket Internet
Explorer
Use Case Controller
Workflow Mgmt
Business Logic Objects
Data Base Objects
XML Interface
Enterpirse Application
Integration
Data Base Tier
Transaction Processing
WHALES
Database
Internet
WHALES
Web Server
WHALES
Application Server
Internet Explorer
Fig. 6. WHALES Technical Architecture
Each layer can be executed stand-alone, independently from the actual
implementation of the other layers. Moreover each layer can scale-up or scale-out
its processing needs, depending on the growing project network needs, for
processing needs, depending on the growing project network needs, for instance
when WHALES is configured to support more and more concurrent projects, and
new partners are added to the configured project networks.
The e-business scenario
The Enterprise Applications market scenario, in which WHALES is positioned, is
characterised by the following features:
• Shift from the traditional ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) concept;
• Emergence of the C-Commerce paradigm.
In fact, the general trend for the Enterprise Software Applications market, according to the main analysts, has shown both a significant drop in sales of ERP
systems and a significant increase of E-Business application expenditures since
1999. This trend is expected to continue in the next years (see Figure7).
Fig. 7. Trend in enterprise application market3
The main factors determining these trends are:
− The ERP concept itself is losing its appeal for potential customers. The “integrated system” added value is perceived only for back-office functions, while
leaner solutions are required for front-end applications like Collaborative Project Management and Supply Chain Management.
− The users’ ERP investments are being downsized from new function
implementations to maintenance, while new functions are implemented
integrating selected specific tools. Consequently, users now prefers a hybrid
3
Source: Gartner Group – "IT Expo 2000" – Conference Proceedings
selected specific tools. Consequently, users now prefers a hybrid solution approach, where legacy applications are integrated with select modules from vendors specialised in each functional area (“best of breed”), see Figure 8.
Supply Chain,
Customer Manag,
Manag,
E-Commerce,
..
RP
Beyond E ERP-OO
P
R
E
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
Fig. 8. Post-year 2000 market trend4
Another important factor affecting the new market scenario is globalisation,
i.e., the impact of the unavoidable expansion of the global economy for any business. Companies of every size are challenged to compete on the international market, or not to grow at all. Contractors’ Networks are increasingly international,
which brings relevant management problems. In order to reduce the time to market and costs of new products or new projects, it is necessary to manage and allocate resources at the network level rather than at the single business level. Therefore systems giving full network visibility and integrating data from all the actors
working in different nodes and in different project phases, are needed. In other
words, it's necessary to extend Concurrent Engineering concepts outside the
boundaries of the single company.
This broad level of interaction requires a new business model, defined as Collaborative Commerce (C-Commerce). That means achieving benefits from realtime co-operation with business partners, involving a range of processes much
wider than simple on-line selling and procurement. The fundamental necessity affecting business applications in the evolution from the traditional e-commerce to
c-commerce is the shift from capabilities centred on transaction optimisation to
opportunity expansion in the form of initiatives designed to have an impact on
top-line revenue and market growth.
C-commerce is aimed at creating a collaborative framework that allows companies to engage with cyber-market partners for the purpose of creating and con4
Source: Gartner Group – "IT Expo 2000" – Conference Proceedings
necting agile business processes. In the “four C’s” of e-business — content,
community, commerce and collaboration — there are considerable differences
between a vision which is e-commerce or c-commerce oriented. E-commerce is
designed to construct a virtual link between a pre-defined community of trading
partners for the purpose of buying and selling goods and services. Content is generally confined to Web catalogues of finished goods, and collaboration mechanisms centre on exchanging messages or purchasing transactions. C-commerce
provides a much deeper and richer form of B2B interaction designed to allow trading partners to serve as virtual collaborators across a wide array of business processes. Thus, a c-commerce framework acts as a virtual conduit for connecting information repositories, business applications and business processes, allowing
companies to exploit opportunities in the Internet-connected economy more easily.
C-Commerce:
The Emerging E-Business Model
Cyber
Market
Connection
Paradigm
Traditional
Trading
Partners
Enterprise
C-Commerce
2000 - 2005
E-Commerce
1995 - 2000
Domain
- 1995
Departmental
Productivity
External
Transactions
Collaborative
Interaction
Business Paradigm
Fig. 9. C-Commerce: The emerging e-business model5
By enabling real-time visibility and interoperability across multiple companies
working together as virtual enterprises (horizontal visibility and collaboration) and
across all the processes concerned the entire project life cycle, like, for instance,
one-of-a-kind product design and of-a-kind product manufacturing (vertical visibility and collaboration), WHALES responds perfectly to the emerging CCommerce paradigm.
5
Source: Gartner Group – "IT Expo 2000" – Conference Proceedings
Conclusion
Globalisation and increased competitiveness have changed many traditional business paradigms. Companies are beginning to focus on their core businesses and
create strategic relationships with third parties to increase the quality and competitiveness of their products and services. At the same time product life cycles are
becoming shorter and shorter. Time to market of new products must be adapted to
this trend.
Time consumed in arranging negotiating and managing communications and
data exchange inherent in outsourcing is however in contrast with the explicit need
to spend less time getting products or services to market. This rationale is particularly true in the case of companies working on large scale, one-of-a-kind engineering projects. The concentration of companies on their prime competencies tends to
fragment the project life-cycle processes between contractor, sub-contractors and
outside contractors. Bottlenecks caused by the exchange of information have obvious consequences on project execution time (time to market). Large-scale projects commonly assigned through a lowest bid process are particularly susceptible
to this problem.
The WHALES software has a very favourable market position because it provides tools to create and manage a collaborative information system which is able
to exploit the enormous potential of the web and knock down inter-company barriers. Establishing real-time collaboration between actors involved in different
phases in different geographic locations during the course of one or more projects
ensures WHALES’ place in this upcoming market.
Acknowledgements
The WHALES project owes its acknowledgement to the WHALES Consortium
members:
− Three industrial partners: Gruppo Formula Spa – Italy (Coordinator); Fordesi
LdA – Portugal; MT-System – Hungary;
− Three academic partners: University of Bremen – Germany; University of
Rome "Tor Vergata" – Italy; Computer and Automation Research Institute,
Hungarian Academy of Sciences – Hungary;
− Four users partners: Lisnave Estaleiros S.A. – Portugal; Fata Group SpA –Italy;
Metz Aerials Gmbh & Co. KG – Germany; MT-System – Hungary.
Special recognition also to the European Commission that co-founded the
WHALES project (V Framework – IST Program, contract no. IST-1999-12538),
and to the Reviewers team, that contributed with their comments to the progress of
the project.
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