Special Report

Integrating with Primavera

John Garay
Product Manager
Primavera Systems
Three Bala Plaza
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
USA

+1-610-949-6922
jgaray@primavera.com
 Enterprise Project Management in the Utility Industry

Integration Benefits
As Primavera products take their place alongside other corporate systems, more
and more customers look to integration to gain a competitive advantage.
Customers who deploy integration between Primavera products and other
corporate systems enjoy a number of key advantages over their disconnected
peers, including:

1.) Ability to Make Decisions Based Upon Complete Information –

Integration gives managers access to comprehensive project
information in their other corporate systems.

2.) Ability to Make Quicker Decisions – Managers can make more

timely business decisions based upon “real-time” project data.

3.) Increased Operational Efficiency – With integrated systems, there is

no need for a “one-size fits all” approach. Instead, each employee
can use the best tool for their particular job while the organization
still benefits from integrated systems.

4.) Reduced Administrative Costs – Integration eliminates the need for

someone to manually enter important information into different
systems.

5.) Increase Collaboration Between Departments – Integration keeps

everyone aware of developments in other departments, increasing
communication and collaboration.

Types of Integration
Many corporate applications naturally fit with Primavera scheduling tools,
including accounting, estimating, human resource, methodology, requirements
management, cost management, and document management systems. In
many cases, Primavera Authorized Partners already offer pre-built integration,
while in other cases integration is possible with the help of integration experts
(For a list of Primavera partners, visit http://www.primavera.com/partners).
Interfaces can take many forms, from import/export routines to real-time links –
which one makes sense for a given customer depends upon that customer’s
particular integration requirements.

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 Primavera Systems, Inc. 2001
 Enterprise Project Management in the Utility Industry

Integration Ingredients
The ingredients necessary for successful integration efforts between Primavera
products and other corporate systems include integration TECHNOLOGY built
into Primavera software, integration TOOLS to facilitate integration efforts, and
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES around them all to determine and implement the
specific technology and tools that should be used to satisfy the needs of a
particular customer.

Figure 1: The Basic Ingredients to a Successful Integration

Application: From an integration standpoint, Primavera applications consist

of database and Application levels.

- Database Level: Since Primavera products reside on open databases

SQL Server (TeamPlay and Primavera Enterprise), SQL Anywhere
(Expedition), Oracle (TeamPlay, Primavera Enterprise, and Expedition),
Interbase (TeamPlay and Primavera Enterprise), and Pervasive (P3
3.0)– integration is possible at the database level. Advantages of
database-level integration include relatively quick performance and a
large number of consultants familiar with the technology. The
disadvantages include lack of business rule adherence, danger of
data corruption, and the need to write separate interfaces for each
database. For pulling data out, business rules are not an issue.
However, integration that puts data into Primavera applications
should follow business rules to reduce the risk of data corruption.
Due to data corruption risks, Primavera does NOT support direct
database-level access.

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 Primavera Systems, Inc. 2001
 Enterprise Project Management in the Utility Industry

- Application Level: The application level contains all of the business

rules and functionality of the Primavera application. For most efforts,
application level integration is recommended due to business rule
adherence, database independence, and access to application
functionality (such as resource spreads).

Technology: Integration technology must exist in order for integration to be

possible. Different technologies are available to access Primavera products:

- Database Level: Given that Primavera applications reside on open

databases, Primavera data can be accessed via a number of
technologies, including SQL and ODBC calls. The main advantages of
database level access are both faster performance and widely-
understood access techniques. The main disadvantages are the lack
of business rules, the risk of data corruption, and the lack of official
support from Primavera.

- Application Level: The primary technologies for application-level

access to Primavera products are client-side APIs (Application
Programming Interfaces). Examples of this include the Expedition
API, RA in P3 3.0, and the Primavera Enterprise/TeamPlay API. The
main advantages of using an API are adherence to business rules and
access to application functionality, along with official support from
Primavera. The main disadvantages are slower performance and
proprietary design.

- XML Server – Primavera is currently developing an XML Server for

Primavera Enterprise and TeamPlay. The XML Server will support
server-side integration and will greatly ease integration efforts with
other corporate systems. Advantages of the XML Server will be
support for XML and the ability to transfer large data sets on the
server. The main disadvantage will be its relatively inefficiency with
small data sets. While the XML Server may eventually become the
primary way to move data in and out of Primavera products, the API
will be included and supported in both Primavera Enterprise and
TeamPlay for the near future.

Tools: While technology makes integration possible, flexible tools facilitate

integration efforts. Available tools range from programming languages such as
Visual Basic to the commercial Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) tools
such as such as the IMPRESS integration engine, Vignette Business Integration
Studio (the Primavera Link software), Primaplan Flint, SPII Satellite, Mercator,
and Webmethods.

The value of an EAI tool is derived from the amount of development time it
saves in a particular case. Thus, in simple integration efforts, an expensive,
comprehensive integration tool (such as the Link software) may not be the best
tool for the job. However, in more complicated integration efforts, a more
expensive integration tool may be well worth the money.

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 Primavera Systems, Inc. 2001
 Enterprise Project Management in the Utility Industry

- Database Level: A number of tools exist that can be used to access

the database level of Primavera applications. These include
programming languages and some EAI tools.

- Application Level: Along with programming tools that can access

APIs, there are over fifty companies that offer Enterprise Application
Integration tools. Primavera customers have successfully used tools
such as the IMPRESS integration engine, Vignette Business
Integration Studio, Primaplan FLINT, SPII Satellite, Mercator and
WebMethods. Which tool to use depends upon the needs of the
particular customer.

Professional Services: Integration consulting is required to analyze

available technologies and tools and bring them to bear on a particular
customer’s integration requirements. Primavera offers integration professional
services to customers who want comprehensive integration between Primavera
products and their other corporate systems.

Detailed information about database table structures and APIs are available
with each Primavera product.

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 Primavera Systems, Inc. 2001
 Enterprise Project Management in the Utility Industry

About Primavera Systems, Inc.

Founded in 1983, Primavera Systems, Inc. is the leading provider of enterprise

project management, control, and execution software. Primavera’s innovative
solutions help companies around the world maximize their project and resource
investments through strategic project portfolio management; achieve faster
times to market and increased return on investment through flawless project
execution; and ensure repeatable project successes through integrated best
practices.

Please contact Primavera Systems, Inc. for more information:

Primavera Systems, Inc.
Three Bala Plaza West Ste 700
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
USA

+1.610.667.8600
info@primavera.com
www.primavera.com

Copyright © 2002. Primavera and the Primavera sundial logo are registered trademarks of Primavera Systems, Inc.

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 Primavera Systems, Inc. 2001