Introduction

 

This section describes the example business problem that serves as the background for the WebLogic Integration sample. It includes the following topics:

• Scope of the Sample

• Background to the Scenario

• Deploying an Integrated Solution

 

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Scope of the Sample

BEA WebLogic Integration^TM is a single platform that delivers application server, application integration, business process modeling, and business-to-business (B2B) integration functionality for the enterprise.

The WebLogic Integration sample demonstrates how to develop a new application, integrate it with existing systems, streamline complex business processes, and connect business partners using the WebLogic Integration platform. The sample code documented here is available in the /samples/wlis directory of your WebLogic Integration installation.

The sample implementation addresses only part of the complete supply chain automation and integration challenge, but it demonstrates how you can use the flexible WebLogic Integration platform to develop solutions according to your requirements, thereby improving efficiency within your company and across the value chain.

 

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Background to the Scenario

General Control Systems (GCS) is an Illinois-based division of a large enterprise that makes a variety of control systems for factories and office buildings.

EnergyMiser 76 History

GCS has produced the EnergyMiser 76, a monitoring and control system for reducing electrical consumption, since the oil crisis of the 1970s. The company supplies these energy control systems for three other OEM companies. GCS procures the metal boxes used for the EnergyMiser 76 from Midwest Metals, a medium-size firm in Chicago. Midwest Metals has been the exclusive supplier of the silk-screened boxes for 25 years.

GCS's value-added resellers (VAR) all use EDI systems to automate their supply chains. GCS has been using EDI in both its supply and demand chains for 15 years, to process orders from VARs and to automate procurement from Midwest Metals. Inventories of the silk-screened boxes are controlled by an automated replenishment system that links the EDI systems of GCS and Midwest Metals. The supply-chain mechanism has been working smoothly because demand for the EnergyMiser 76 model has been steady, making it easy for GCS to plan its inventory needs.

The corporate parent of GCS recently started an initiative to use BEA WebLogic Integration as its business-to-business (B2B) infrastructure. Until now, GCS has been unable to justify a move to this system because it has a working system in place, and neither suppliers nor customers have requested XML-based B2B transactions.

Increase in Demand for Product

Suddenly, in Q3, GCS is overwhelmed by an unprecedented glut of orders for the EnergyMiser 76 from its VARs. The automated replenishment system goes into operation and an automated EDI 850 message (purchase order) is sent to Midwest Metals for a larger than usual order of silk-screened boxes. The president of Midwest Metals calls the GCS procurement department to let them know that his company is unable to fill the entire order in the specified time because his plant does not have enough capacity.

The Midwest Metals president further explains that he cannot increase the capacity of his plant unless he has a long-term, open purchase order for the increased capacity. The GCS manager explains that the spike in demand is due to unusually large orders from customers in California. However, because of the uncertainties of the Californian energy situation, it is unclear whether the current orders indicate a long-term increase in demand or a temporary spike.

Understanding the situation, the procurement manager buys the maximum allotment of supplies from Midwest Metals and begins to look for alternative sources. Remembering the new corporate initiative to improve the B2B integration infrastructure, he contacts the IT Department to discuss short-term plans to resolve the current crisis and long-term plans to gain more control and visibility into the supply chain to avoid future shortages or other surprises. He realizes that this situation is an indication of how the GCS legacy system is no longer sufficient to meet today's automated and dynamic marketplace.

 

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Deploying an Integrated Solution

GCS is the channel master in this value chain. To improve efficiency in its marketplace and drive competitive advantage, GCS deploys a supply-chain hub using BEA WebLogic Integration.

The sample application is a supply-chain hub that connects business partners, automates a number of business processes, and integrates back-end enterprise information systems. This sample application does not address the GCS demand chain or GCS integration with its VARs. See The End-to-End EDI Sample in Using EDI with WebLogic Integration for a sample EDI integration application.

Short-Term and Long-Term Advantages

Deployment of the hub has both short-term and long-term advantages. It resolves the current crisis by facilitating procurement of supplies from partners other than Midwest Metals in an approved vendor list (AVL), and it establishes a system that streamlines the supply chain for future business.

Deploying a supply-chain hub allows GCS to automate several processes. In this sample application, GCS engages in a conversation with selected business partners. The following sequence of events summarizes the transaction among the business partners:

1. A price and availability query is issued by GCS to approved secondary suppliers.

2. GCS collects the responses from the suppliers and presents them to the ordering manager for selection of a supplier.

3. A purchase order is generated for the selected supplier.

4. The purchase order is automatically entered into the company's ERP system.

5. The selected supplier returns a purchase order acknowledgment to GCS.

6. The purchase order record is automatically updated with information from the purchase order acknowledgment (for example, the supplier's sales order number).

The following figure illustrates the process flow for the price and availability query exchanged by the GCS hub and its suppliers.

Figure 1-1 Process Flow of the Sample Application

 

Solution Architecture

The WebLogic Integration sample implements the solution by deploying four business entities: a hub, a buyer, and two supplier trading partners. In a production environment, each entity can run on a separate WebLogic Integration server. However to simplify the procedure for running the sample, this scenario uses a collocated approach in which a single WebLogic Integration server hosts all four entities. The following figure illustrates the implementation.

Figure 1-2 Implementation Architecture for WebLogic Integration Sample

 

The functions performed by the business entities that make up the sample are described in the following table.

Table 1-1 Functions Performed by Business Entities in Sample

Business Entity	Function
WLIS_Hub	Routes the communication between the buyer and suppliers, providing business-to-business integration
WLIS_Buyer	Coordinates business processes among suppliers and internal functions (for example, back-end database updates), using workflow templates Provides connectivity to the buyer's database system, using an application view Handles data presentation and the user interface through HTML and JSP pages
WLIS_SupplierOne	Responds to requests from the buyer and invokes internal programs (for example, data transformation and persistence), using workflow templates Performs data translations to facilitate the exchange of information among applications
WLIS_SupplierTwo	Responds to requests from the buyer and invokes internal programs (for example, data transformation and persistence), using workflow templates Performs data translations to facilitate the exchange of information among applications