Overview
The term “architecture” appears in almost any discussion of information and automation technology applications. Although the dictionary defines the term as pertaining to “designing buildings, open areas, communities, and other artificial constructions and environments;” in the technology world, “architecture” is used to describe the principles and models at the foundation of systems design, which are often then further qualified as solution architecture, system architecture, software architecture, reference architecture, and so on. A simple web search yields millions of references.
Automation Architecture – Different Things for Different Professions
The result is that the term has become both ubiquitous and ambiguous. Asset owners and others who must identify, assess, and select technology solutions are often confused about how the term is used and to what it actually refers. Consultants and other advisors may tell them that they must define their architecture, without defining what this entails.
Many courses, textbooks, models or other published descriptions of the concept are available, but they are often difficult to apply to real-world situations without specialized expertise. It is often difficult to justify having such expertise in house, and external experts can be very expensive. Architecture is also often conflated with strategy, further complicating the situation. An architecture addresses questions of “what,” while strategy defines the “how.”
To translate theory into practice it is first necessary to define needs and expectations clearly. Each asset owner must address these and related questions for their specific situation based on business process requirements and expectations.
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Keywords: Automation Architecture, Lifecycle, Models, Portfolio, Standards, ARC Advisory Group.