PIPELINE IT-REPORTNo. 1 | 2013

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Contents

Flexible process management with GeoNAM

Integrity Management

Asset Management – thematic mapping

News from our user meetings

New GEOMAGIC staff

Events 2013

“Pipelinetage” annual conference 2013

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Editor, layout and composition: Frauke BeelmannVISDP (responsible under German Press Law): Frauke Beelmann

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PIPELINE IT-REPORT 1 | 2013

Golo Hoffmann is head of product development for GeoNAM and LaRA at GEOMAGIC GmbH. In this interview, he gives background information on a new module for process design and process management using GeoNAM.

How did you come to develop a process mana-gement module, what was your motivation?

When implementing customer workflows in GeoNAM, we encountered similar process structures across companies. However, processes do still differ in their individual steps because of the organizational context. So obviously there isn’t any standard process that fits every one of our partners, but instead a set of reusable functionalities. This made us look for a tool that helps us to flexibly combine these functiona-lities into a process tailored to each customer’s needs.

Why do you think process modeling should be flexible and adaptable?

The regulatory and organizational requirements for companies, and the markets, too, are changing fast, so that business processes have to be adapted and optimized at short intervals. This means that soft-ware tools also need to allow for flexible definition and adaptation of process models. Many businesses outsource sub-processes or entire processes and need to be able to control and supervise their external con-tractors. This brings in a whole new set of challenges: Software tools need to be flexible technologically,

Dear readers,

it has been a long, hard wait this year, but spring has finally arrived and brings with it fresh news in this edition of GEOMAGIC’s Pipeline IT-Report. This issue includes an interview on process management with GeoNAM, information on new product features and a review of our 2013 user meetings. We also welcome

new staff and invite you to the events planned for the rest of this year.

Frauke Beelmann Marketing and Communications

1. Flexible process management with GeoNAM

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and they also need to cater to different parties with their individual points of view. It is common that each actor in a business workflow has a different focus on aspects of what is essentially the same process. The technical experts who need the process to flow smoothly have to communicate with the IT experts who have to implement it, and the differences in their perception (technical requirements vs. software features) can be hard to bridge. I think that existing applications do not address this issue satisfactorily.

So how is support for process modeling integrated into GeoNAM, and what are the requirements for using it?

GeoNAM serves as the interface for managing pro-cess flow. When users logs in to GeoNAM, they see a list of due jobs from all the processes they are involved in. It’s a sort of personal inbox for process steps. The Workflow Engine for the GeoNAM suite provides the means to model processes in a language that is accessible to all parties involved. The BPMN (business process model and notation) specification serves as a meeting point between technical requirements and logical implementation. Processes can be described from a technical point of view: Which activities have to be completed in which order, when, by whom and under which conditions? A process model is created using a dedicated Process Designer tool. Processes modeled using BPMN can then be interpreted by GeoNAM and managed directly inside the application. The figure on the next page shows a simple example process for dealing with third party inquiries.

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And remember: This process model can be executed within the application! After you have designed the process, you can upload its definition into GeoNAM and run it.

What kinds of processes can be managed using this module?

Basically, every task that comes up regularly and has more than one step is a candidate to be examined. Typical examples are dealing with third party inqui-ries, planning follow-up maintenance measures, answering requests for compensation payments or generating yearly risk assessment reports. This list can be extended indefinitely, as each activity performed within a company is a part of some process.

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Who is responsible for designing the process model?

Typically, the process model is designed by technical and IT experts together – just as it has been done up to now. However, we now have a common language to integrate requirements and IT aspects. The result of such a meeting is not a process model that later has to be translated into a fixed application function-ality by the software developers, but one that can be executed directly. This makes it easier for the technical experts to specify their requirements and for us to meet them. In this way, we hope to avoid inter-company and inter-departmental communication problems.

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2. Product news

2.1 Integrity Management

What are the benefits of the Workflow Engine for GeoNAM?

Process-driven development in GeoNAM will increase flexibility in adapting to new requirements and to changes in the IT system. The application can be customized and optimized faster and for less money. The process modeling language will improve commu-nication between technical and IT experts. GeoNAm will also support the users during their work on a process by visualizing the position of the current job

within its process context. This is done by highlighting the current job in the process chart that is part of the BPMN process model (see screenshot on the left).

What happens if a workflow has to be changed?

The process model gets adapted and uploaded into GeoNAM. Then you are ready to run the modified process without any programming effort.

A new release of trascue.PIMS is planned for the end of the second quarter. Version 3.0 will have a number of improvements and new features, including:

� support for event and assessment segment lengths as parameters for assessment formulas

� data quality level markers can now be configured

� intelligent filtering by criticality and coloring by criticality

2.2 Asset Management – thematic mapping

� segment filter: irrelevant segments can be excluded from assessment

� aggregate results: results can be considered for stretches of pipe longer than an assessment segment, e. g. for finding minimum or maximum pressure values on a pipe segment or on a line

For more detailed information, please subscribe to our product newsletter.

Thematic maps allow GeoNAM users to dynamically filter and style data kept in GeoNAM for map display. Besides filtering for defined technical properties, maps can be created for data with specific temporal (due dates, periods) or spatial references.

Thematic mapping module features:

� define your own styles

� create GeoNAM map layers for Assets, Measures, Causes and Reports

� filter the objects to be displayed

� style the objects according to defined properties and to zoom level

� create map layers directly from your search results

� create legends for your thematic layers

Thematic layers

For each thematic layer, you can specify exactly how the objects selected for map display are to be styled. The objects to be displayed can be selected for specific attribute values. They can also be assigned different display styles according to zoom level.

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3. News from our user meetings 2013

3.1 PIMS user meeting, 22 January 2013 in Dortmund

3.2 LaRA user meeting, 21 February 2013 in Leipzig

Thematic layers can be included into any GeoNAM map view. A legend is generated, showing which objects are displayed using which style.

Style management

The style management functionality lets you define standard styles that can be used in any number of layers. You can define display styles for points, lines and areas.

The 2013 PIMS user meeting took place on 22 January at Thyssengas GmbH in Dortmund. Prospec-tive users and other participants with an interest in Pipeline Integrity Management Systems discussed new developments. Talks were given on ways to standar- dize integrity management, assessment methods, business process management for pipeline integrity,

and on strategies for introducing integrity manage-ment systems. Besides hearing about PIMS users’ experiences, there was time for questions and dis-cussions. Everybody enjoyed comparing notes and sharing hints, which makes us look forward to next year’s event.

The 2013 LaRA user meeting on managing proper-ties and easements boasted a record number of 23 participants from 15 companies meeting at the GDMcom GmbH in Leipzig. LaRA users gave short presentations on the way the application is used in their organization. GEOMAGIC staff presented new product features and gave information on the latest release. There also was a discussion and question

session for going into more detail on the presen- tation topics.

Talks, user reports and discussions facilitate knowledge transfer between LaRA users. We at GEOMAGIC get qualified feedback on our product, which helps us improve it. We hope we’ll be welcoming at least as many participants as this year in 2014.

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4. New GEOMAGIC staff

3.3 GeoNAM user meeting, 20 and 21 March 2013 in Kassel

The GeoNAM user meeting was hosted by GASCADE Gastransport GmbH in Kassel on 20 and 21 March 2013. There were user reports, and GEOMAGIC staff presented GeoNAM’s new business process modeling module (see the above interview with Golo Hoffmann). Example projects and ideas for the future use of the GeoNAM process module as well as procedures for

strategic planning using the GeoNAM suite were reviewed. The presenters were available for questions, and there also was a discussion round.

We are proud of the positive feedback we got from the participants, and we’re sure next year’s event will be as successful.

In March 2013, Frauke Beelmann has joined the GEOMAGIC team. Ms. Beelmann works in marketing and communications and, as of the end of April,

takes on the tasks of Ms. Leutbecher who is going on maternity leave.

5. Events 2013

� SWUG, 22 to 24 April in Berlin, Germany

� GE Digital Energy Conference, 13 to 16 May in Brighton, UK

� AGA American Gas Association, 21 to 24 May in Orlando, FL, USA

� gat conference, 30 September to 2 October in Nuremberg, Germany

� Gita GIS for Oil and Gas Pipeline Conference, 28 to 30 October in Houston, TX, USA

6. “Pipelinetage” annual conference 2013

On the 12th and 13th of November, GEOMAGIC invites customers and interested guests to the eighth annual “Pipelinetage” conference. This year’s event will be held in Leipzig and include a trade exhibition. We are going to use the Leipzig School of Media’s house “Villa Ida”. The summer months will see us planning the agenda, and we will keep you up to date.

www.geomagic.de