Network middleware for enterprise enhanced operation
W. Loeve, M.E.S. Vogels, H. van der Ven, Erik H. Baalbergen · 1997
Enterprises are confronted with the challenge to lower cost of R&D and product engineering. More efficient transfer of know-how from R&D to engineering and between (generations of) engineers facilitates facing the challenge. Enterprise know-how has to be conserved in enterprises in the form of software such as for simulation, electronic documents and data. IT can enhance enterprise operation by giving engineers that work in or for the enterprise, easy access to the enterprise know-how. This requires a combination of distributed and centralized computing, a suitable network strategy and IT tools for management, control and use of the conserved enterprise know-how. In the paper the middleware SPINE for UNIX networks is described by which the network presents itself to the engineers as one single virtual computer. In the paper the considerations and the technical principles are illustrated by examples from two applications: a national virtual centre for Computational Fluid Dynamics for engineering and an IT framework for distributed multi-discipline design, analysis and optimisation of industry products. An estimation is given of the effort to be spent to realize and maintain such virtual single computers for a cooperating group.