Complex Data Exchange Solutions

There are two main integration paradigms today: data integration and application integration (these are broad definitions with each having sub-segmented use cases). Data integration is about making sure that the data contained in enterprise data sources is correct, concise and reusable. Application integration is about making sure that applications can exchange information between them. These two types of integration are of course related, though one is usually batch oriented (data integration) while the other is usually real time (application integration).

Data integration technologies focus largely on relational data models and their structure, while application integration focuses on the context of use and real world use cases of the data, which is often non-relational, or complex in nature.  Examples of complex data include unstructured data, such as office documents and PDFs; semi-structured data, such as COBOL copybooks, EDI, SWIFT and HIPAA transactions: and complex structured data, which includes large XML schemas such as ACORD in insurance.

The disparity in approaches, tools and skills between integration of complex data and master or reference data perpetuates data fragmentation and data inconsistency in enterprises.  The inability to share and reuse data validation, mapping and constraint rules across operational and master data leads to redundancy in development, data quality and inconsistency for analytic and reporting applications.

Given the profusion of data and overwhelming volumes of complex, real-time feeds, enterprises are increasingly challenged with volatility in data and in turn inefficiency in business processes.  Examples include straight-through processing, claims administration, utility metering, electronic billing, clinical data management, payment and invoice processing, across all major industry segments.

Complex data exchange is a critical component of the data integration fabric. 

• Solutions often require hand-coded support for unstructured and semi-structured data because they cannot convert this data into a single, structured, standardized format. Customers have had to manually develop data parsers to translate proprietary code into standards like XML, a process prone to human error.
  
  
• Companies want to exchange to complex data across their own IT systems and with those of customers, partners and suppliers. But it is difficult, if not nearly impossible, to achieve high levels of service to employees, customers and partners unless users have immediate, reusable solutions to integrating to relevant data.
  
  Complex data exchange technology fully automates transformation of complex data, the most labor intensive part of the data integration lifecycle, by eliminating the "manual" part of the transformation creation process. Further, the technology is embedded in ETL products, EAI products and application servers so that organizations can rationalize their data transformations and associated skills, business rules and metadata in a unified manner across all forms of data exchange.

Sixty-seven percent of CIOs say they're using Complex data exchange solutions to enable business-to-business integration and communication. However, traditional complex data exchange technologies are tightly coupled with middleware, and while they enable information to be shared within B2B exchanges, EAI and data integration projects, they do not promote or allow the reuse of transformations across these different types of projects.  Furthermore, these are first and second generation product technologies that provide little or no automated support transformation of unstructured and semi-structured data. Complex data exchange solutions built on these products are brittle, expensive to maintain and are not reusable across different forms of exchange, minimizing project reuse.

Informatica Complex Data Exchange software cuts integration costs by an average of 70 percent by eliminating the need for hand-coding, which inevitably happens when changes need to be made to business applications or standards. With Informatica Complex Data Exchange, IT architects have access to pre-built translations, which enables them to map and translate once, and deploy everywhere, across all forms of exchange, regardless of the underlying middleware or deployment platform. This helps companies realize an IT holy grail: the reuse of technology, skills and investment.

Industry solutions built on complex data exchange technology from Informatica are inherently scalable, reusable and independent of a specific host platform or integration server.

Complex Data Exchange Solutions for Financial Services
Informatica's next generation complex data exchange technology offers a powerful solution for improving business integration in the financial services industry. Informatica also provides support for multiple financial services transaction standards including SWIFT, FIX, SIC and FpML.
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Complex Data Exchange Solutions for Healthcare
Informatica's next-generation, complex data exchange technology is in use in a wide range of integration applications across the healthcare industry. Informatica technology supports transformation and mapping, via XML, for most healthcare industry standards such as HL7, HIPPA.
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Complex Data Exchange Solutions for Insurance
Informatica's next-generation complex data exchange technology provides a powerful solution for improving communications, standards adoption and other challenges in the insurance industry. Informatica provides support for multiple ACORD transaction standards, speeding standards adoption for organizations in the insurance industry.
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Complex Data Exchange Solutions for Energy, Telecommunications, Utilities
Informatica's next-generation technology provides a powerful solution for improving complex data exchange for energy, telecommunications and utility companies. Informatica technology provides support for communications with business partners in other industries using multiple transaction standards such as EDI X12 and EDIFACT, it also automates integration of legacy data for electronic billing processes (EBPP).
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Complex Data Exchange Solutions for Manufacturing
Informatica's next-generation technology provides a powerful solution for improving complex data exchange for manufacturing, specifically in complex B2B exchange applications involving large numbers of trading partners and variation in data formats, including EDI and unstructured data. Informatica Complex Data Exchange is tailored to B2B and EDI requirements and with extended support for B2B / EDI standards. The result is a comprehensive B2B / EDI integration solution that accommodates today's industry-specific standards and multiple communication protocols-while providing the flexibility to deal with rapidly-evolving business-to-business integration requirements.
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