By contrast, typical public-sector supply chains, such as the Defense Department's logistics systems, are not as efficient, dependable or flexible. The public sector still resists the move to more efficient supply chains, despite the huge upside in responsiveness and lower costs among others. However, the tools for implementing a modern supply chain in the public sector are available and proven: Instant, worldwide communications, interoperable, flexible and secure information technology options -- including the use of open source tools, remote diagnostics, automated decision-making tools and modern, high-speed transportation.
There are several important factors to consider for managers in state and local government looking to solve logistics and/or supply problems. One important factor includes effective and need-based pricing. An agency should look for tools and technologies which allow the purchase of modules with only the functionality that is needed. Another factor to consider includes looking at software as a service (SaaS) as an option if applicable. This method of software delivery virtually eliminates the risks and large expense associated with a system purchase. Managers should look for logistics and supply solutions that provide ease of configuration. Configurable software modules give the agency complete control over the entire enterprise.
From a design perspective, managers should encourage their technical teams to utilize a model-driven architecture, which means that the software is created with multiple layers of abstraction, as an example, the user screens and forms can be changed without impacting any of the technical layers (database, application, integration). With the advances in browser-based technology and the complex nature of logistics and supply systems, the selection of a solution that is Web-based allow for anywhere Internet access to software with a minimum use of hardware. Finally, the use of enterprise open-source solutions and scalable architecture design principles such as Service Oriented Architectures (SOA) is important to consider when solving a problem or developing a logistics and supply system.
With the advancement in enterprise open source, and its gradual adoption in the public sector, it is highly recommended that managers consider the intelligent use of an open-source model either 100 percent use or hybrid use of open source and COTS to co-create a system; then use the native development tools of a COTS tool to alter and change the software at will after installation.
Several years ago, CIO Weekly said open source is a rapidly growing technology. Within five years, 54 percemt of CIOs surveyed said open source will be their primary platform." There is a growing trend in the public sector for the adoption of open source technologies. Government procurement departments are starting to encourage the use of open standards and tools in prospective solutions and are even encouraging the use of open source tools where applicable. Concepts such as SOA, .NET, J2EE and Enterprise Architecture (EA) are built into many procurement policies these days based on their need. However, at this point, public-sector procurement policies don't typically dictate the exclusive use of open source technologies due to their perceived lack of maturity as mission-critical applications. This is a trend that I believe will change as the maturity perception changes and there is broader application of open source for mission-critical systems.
While the adoption of open source technologies has been growing at a fast pace over the last few years, there is still apprehension in the "enterprise use" of open source as the dominant platform in the implementation of mission-critical systems in the public sector. By "enterprise use" I mean using a complete stack of non-proprietary open-source tools for everything from the backend database at the data layer, the core applications and modules at the application layer, a messaging engine or a service bus at the integration layer and creative user interface design techniques leveraging advances in the Web 2.0 space. Large commercial vendors still dominate the technology market in most if not all the layers of an n-Tier architecture, so much so that according to the research firm IDC Corp., federal, state and local governments combined spend upwards of $34 billion a year on software.
That being said, open source software by its very nature requires that its software code be open, extensible, and openly available. This paradigm enables programmers globally to share thoughts and ideas, constantly increasing the power and quality of development tools and large applications. On the commercial side, Google is powered by over 10,000 Linux servers and used primarily because of the efficient price-to-performance ratio. Amazon said it was able to cut technology expenses by about 25 percent. On the other hand, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Vicksburg, Miss., decided to move toward Windows XP as the standard platform -- interesting considering their super computer runs SUSE Linux.
The power of these open-source tools and the low cost of development are precisely why Keane, a billion dollar global business and IT consulting firm, went with a predominantly open-source model for the design and development of the United States Air Force Enterprise Solution-Supply (ES-S) system, an enterprise supply-chain system that is part of the larger Integrated Logistics Supply System (ILSS). The system is used at all Air Force bases and depot locations.
Through technology foresight and business insight, the project has been successful in its use of cost effective open-source tools to help the Air Force achieve its mission and goals. According to Paul Saladna, lead architect at Keane for the Air Force Logistics project (ESS), the system handles 5,000 users and around 3,000 simultaneous users during peak time. The advantages of this solution are many including cost savings, lower development time, and better allocation of resources to mission-critical activities and low-risk solutions. The project is saving around 2 million lines of code by using a composite COTS approach, utilizing an intelligent mix of open-source tools. According to Robin Peterson, ES-S program manager, "Based on the initial fully fielded ES-S Release 2.0 and what it cost to develop and deploy, a rough cost estimate for capability we did not have to code by using free open source software is around $2,646,048." This cost effective combination provides the USAF with the visibility of assets across both retail and wholesale systems, integrating the information in near real time into an intuitive, Web-based interface using Google Web Tools to enhance our Web 2.0 capability. The project also used a SOA-based approach to modern integration leveraging the latest in open source innovation and the Java platform to rapidly deliver integrated capability to expose legacy systems without modification to those systems.
Some core and notable open-source technologies used include the Spring Framework, an application and integration framework for the Java platform, iBatis for persistence, Apache Axis, an XML Web service framework, application development done in Java using Tomcat, Mitemview as the adaptor to connect to legacy Air Force systems and extensive use of open source libraries and JEE/ J2EE components to develop an innovative transformation and business rules engine. This is an intelligent "enterprise use" of open source technologies.
A blended approach to Enterprise Application Development using a combination
of Agile and VIEWW (Keane's equivalent of the RUP methodology) methodologies has been used to quickly deliver modernized solutions meeting 100 percent of client expectations. This collaborative development approach allowed the team to more efficient review and testing, thereby helping to speed development.
Logistics and supply chain managers have to make some critical decisions about the strategies they want to implement in the coming years. The positive news is that both the technology options and a strong precedence for success both exist and can be leveraged.
I believe that through the adoption of technologies such as open-source tools and innovative forward-thinking solutions, government best practices will be used as examples to follow in the commercial arena. Industries such as defense and aerospace, manufacturing and financial could benefit greatly from efficient and cost effective enterprise-level supply chain systems, collaborative decision support engines and intelligent rules agents that change as the global economy changes.
Shamlan Siddiqi is a senior enterprise/solutions architect at Keane Inc.
