Details on the 2017 London EA User Group are available.
It will take place on Thursday 18th and Friday 19th of May 2017 in the City area of London. Compared with previous events, this EAUG will run on 2 days. This decision has been taken based on a recent survey where a day dedicated on training with the tool was requested.
This first training day is optional, whilst the second day will include talks as on previous years.
I will run a presentation on Friday 19th of May on "Running automated tests with your EA add-ins" (see abstract below).
Summary
- What? 2 days of Enterprise Architect related training, presentations and networking
- When? Thursday 18th and Friday 19th May 2017
- Where? Code Node, LONDON, EC2M 7BT
- Official site: www.eausergroup.com
Plan
- Thursday 18th May, 9am-5pm: an EA training day, with a small number of in-depth sessions led by approved Sparx Enterprise Architect training partners. Full details will be published shortly.
- Note: training numbers will be limited.
- Thursday 6pm onwards: an evening networking event.
- Friday 19th May: a ‘traditional’ EAUG event day - including shorter presentations, case studies and user stories.
Tickets
- £550 to join us for the full 2 day event.
- £75 to join us on Friday only.
EA User Group London 2017 Agenda
Presentations abstracts, Friday May 19th
Opening Keynote - Peter Lieber; LieberLieber Software
Enterprise Architecture and Standardisation to survive as innovation leader and/or to have the chance to innovate.
Running automated tests with your EA add-ins
Author: Guillaume Finance; Viseo
One of the strengths of EA lies in its capability to be extended through stereotypes and UML profiles, custom searches, automated scripts, add-ins, etc. Scripts and add-ins use EA’s API to run automated tasks and achieve new features. As a result, Sparx EA community has released a wide range of free and commercial add-ins such as EANavigator, hoTools, eaDocX, BEASI, etc.
Since 2015, Guillaume maintains and shares a free utilities add-in: eaUtils (www.eautils.com). This add-in started off with the need to centralize and share features from existing custom scripts. eaUtils is aimed at saving time in specific scenarios such as sorting a wide array of elements within the model, generating the alias value for elements according to their layout in a diagram.
Since its release, eaUtils range of settings has increased making it more and more time consuming to run tests for each build. As a personal project, Guillaume looked at defining and running automated tests for eaUtils addin directly in EA before releasing version 1.12. To extend further the usefulness of such module successfully implemented specifically for eaUtils, Guillaume has investigated existing open source add-ins to associate and run automated tests.
This talk will illustrate the automated test module designed and implemented in eaUtils addin, followed by the integration study with other add-ins.
EA and version control in practice
Speaker: Dennis Geluk; DiVetro
Trying to find the best way to get your model under version control? What to choose? Separate EA project files with simple merges, the “common” database or integrating a version control tool like TFS or SVN.
During this presentation Dennis will give an insight in the experiences and best-practices of DiVetro. These best-practices were created as the result of several consulting assignments and the experience of DiVetro consultants with their own EA / SVN implementation. We will look into the pros and cons of some configurations and pin-point which configuration suits which situation best.
How I model migrations
Speaker: Derek Black; FDA Solutions
How to get non-IT people to start liking EA
Author: Graham Taylor; Cofunds
Anyone who has used EA knows it has its quirks. It can be hugely powerful, or incredibly frustrating depending on what you’re trying to achieve, so how do you get people with no IT background to want to get involved?
In this warts and all case study, we look at how Enterprise Architect has gone from being the domain of just a few “geeks” into the central source for all change programmes within a large financial organisation. Different audiences require very different outputs and so we have had to work through ways of delivering the information people need in a way they can understand.
The session will cover, loading information from various sources such as Visio, Excel and Word, document production with eaDocX and the RTF generator, generating reports with a reporting server / Access databases, Integrating diagrams into PowerPoint.
Replacing existing solutions with EA and extending function with custom MDGs
Author Graham Williamson; Interserve
In the last 6 months Graham introduced Sparx EA into the Group Technology Strategy function within Interserve to enable more accurate and detailed transformational planning of their complex landscape and ambitious change portfolio.
Graham would like to share with you his experience of the following: Real-world enterprise architecture modelling and planning requirements, selecting the right solution (and getting it wrong),extending Sparx EA 13 and Archimate 3.0, creating temporal architecture models, searching and reporting from temporal architecture models, creating exec-level content as well as architect and engineer-level content from the same model, migrating data from an existing EA repository into Sparx, warts and all, benefits so far and future plans.
Visualisation of EA model data in non UML tools.
Author: Hans Natvig; Consoden
Stakeholders are often not interested in UML/SysML diagrams. Many feel that the diagrams are difficult to understand and lose interest very quickly. However, EA-data can easily be exported in a language-independent data format such as JSON for customised visualisation in other tools. An example will be demonstrated where EA is used with UPDM/UAF to model an enterprise architecture where parts are subsequently visualised in a web browser using D3.js and Bootstrap.
Web Collaboration - Everything is about to change
Author: Ian Mitchell; Ability Engineering
Making EA information available to people via a web interface isn’t just a technical change. It means that knowledge stored in EA can now be shared with whole new groups of business users. Done well, this can massively improve how we engage our stakeholders. Done badly, we’ll just create more confusion. In this talk Ian will explore how this can be a game-changer for us modellers, and show what the future can hold.
The future of EA starts here.
Introduction to Martin-Baker and ejection seat technology
Author: James Cullen; Martin Baker Aircraft Corporation
What is driving the change to model-based engineering? What are the advantages gained by using SysML in ejection seat design? A walkthrough of the model and how the systems development lifecycle is implemented with SysML.
How we are developing a standard for model-based engineering at martin-baker. Challenges ahead and areas of improvement.
Enterprise Architect as an (integrated) modelling platform for the Infrastructure and Industrial Domain.
Author: Jan de Liefde; Sysadvise
Is Enterprise Architect usable as an integrated modelling platform for Infrastructure and industrial systems? For a positive answer on this Enterprise Architect should not only be enable to support mechanical, electrical, industrial automation design and safety analysis but also offer graphical presentations for non-engineers like fire departments, traffic operators, legislation departments, etc. This presentation shows engineering artefacts like hazards, event trees, FMECA’s and fault trees for supporting safety analysis and piping & instrumentation diagrams, one line schema’s, elevation diagrams and instrument loop diagrams for supporting electrical, mechanical engineers and instrumentation engineers.
Using Enterprise Architect & SysML for the Development of an In-Wheel Motor System
Author: John Gladstone; Protean Electric
Protean Electric is an award-winning technology company that has developed an in-wheel electric motor system for hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles.
This In-Wheel Electric Motor System is being developed to comply with automotive standard ISO-26262, which provides guidance and recommendations for the development of safety related systems. Included in these recommendations is the use of UML and/or SysML.
Protean Electric has used Enterprise Architect with SysML to develop a system model of the design; ensuring compliance with the standard.
This presentation will explain, with the use of real examples, the specific EA capabilities that have been exploited by Protean Electric during their developing activities. Topics will include: model Structure – how do we organise our model and why? use of Architecture Frameworks & Patterns – why are they useful and how can you implement one? SQL Queries – why being able to write queries is essential for your Systems Engineering activities with EA, Document Generation and the Glossary – document generation is easier than you think! Methodology & Process – putting it all together, Required Reading – there is lots of information out there... where do you start?
This talk will not make you an instant expert on this topic. Its goal is to show what you need to know if your organisation is considering similar activities with EA.
Suppression of Empty Data Properties in Documentation Reports
Author: Phil Chudley; Dunstan Thomas Consulting
When using EA’s documentation functionality and reporting templates, data fields are always output whether or not they contain data. This can result in reports containing many blank sections which may be undesirable. During this presentation, Phil will present a method of supressing properties when no data is present in that property.
A BA, PM, and EA success Story
Author: Ramsay Millar; Integrate
Leaders steering business transformation initiatives, in public and private enterprise, need highly effective strategic BA’s, PM’s, EA’s working collaboratively to ensure business outcomes are realized. We also need to reduce the severe risk of highly visible transformation failures by leveraging productivity tools, and by adopting highly effective techniques. Transformation failures are growing but for a small skilled percentage this is not the case. Find out what success looks like.
Creating collaborative and repeatable transformations with diverse stakeholders are not skills of traditional stove pipe BA’s, PM’s and EA’s. Learn insights on why BA’s PM’s and EABA’s need to collaborate effectively to dramatically improve business value during ever demanding and changing times. Gain insights on how the top few performing organizations practice a systems thinking approach to succeed the first time and avoid failures. Learn directly from recent case studies on how to succeed when planning and executing a transformation across diverse landscapes involving diverse stakeholders.
Over twenty successful Sparx EA TOGAF repository deployment engagements, Millar developed the open INTEGRATED Framework for Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, consisting of a harmonized blend of modeling standards from respected individuals and standards groups including, OMG BMM, OMG BPMN, OMG BIZBOK, OMG UML, CMMI, IEEE, IIBA BABOK, and TOGAF. Learn how one consultant firm has proven to their clients how to accelerate transformations, improve business flexibility, and reduce the severe risk of transformation failures. Enterprise Architects must ensure value by dramatically reducing transformation risks.
Keeping track of changes within a release.
Author: Richard Hilekes: DiVetro
Have you ever tried to keep track of all the changes you and your team made to the model for a specific release? What if your model is used as a benchmark for functionality and suppliers need to have a detailed overview on the changes within a release?
During this presentation Richard will give an insight into the experiences of DiVetro during the maintenance project of the civil records specification in the Netherlands. During this project DiVetro and Municipal experts make regular changes to civil records specifications and release them 2 or 3 times a year. With each release, detailed release notes were needed to keep suppliers involved. Clever use of tailored “Statuses” and traceability options within EA made it possible to generate the release notes for every release (up to 100 pages).
We will look at the process we use and the way EA helps us to keep track of changes.
Gaining Control over Your Enterprise’s Modelling Environment
Author: Terry Merriman; OAD Consulting
More and more companies are realizing the benefits of formally modeling their architecture. This is especially true where they are focusing on incorporating business architecture with their enterprise architecture to further the company’s strategic plans. However, they are also realizing the need to gain control over their modeling environment in order to produce consistent, meaningful results. This is especially true with more and more business based individuals joining the modeling effort.
In this session, we will explore the development of a profile incorporating concepts from numerous areas including the Business Motivation Model, Business Capability Model, Business Rules, Business Processing, Application Architecture, Solution Architecture, Information Architecture, and Technology Architecture. We will then see how the profile was leveraged to establish processes to promote elements from the planning phase to the implementation phase. Included will be a look at some of the patterns used within the profile to efficiently handle the tagged values and relationships that elements’ metatypes can inherit from their parent metatypes.
Throughout the session, Model Guardian, an extension to Enterprise Architect, will be used to show the overall structure of the profile and to quickly make adjustments and embed extended rules that control what modelers can do. Examples include: Assigning roles to users and limiting their ability to make changes to just those areas of a model that are specific to their role, e.g. creating and deleting only those element types germane to their role. Controlling what element and connector types may be created on a given diagram type. Controlling what element and connector types may appear on a given diagram type. Limiting relationships between elements to those defined in your profile. Consolidating all or parts of XML based MDG profiles for Enterprise Architect, e.g. BPMN 2.0, into your profile and extending your profile rules over them
Finally, the session will demonstrate powerful, dialog driven ways with which to control the modelling effort, e.g. element relationship management. The dialogs leverage your profile to present only those elements and connectors that are relevant to the specific modelling task at hand.
Modelling XSDs with EA’s Schema Composer and add-in EA Message Composer
Author: Tom Geerts; Atrias
Introduction of Atrias at the heart of the Belgian energy market and the CMS project. Old way of working in EA without Schema Composer and EA Message Composer add-in with its drawbacks. Migration to the new way of modelling with its advantages and (remaining) disadvantages. Possibility for a live demo/workshop. Challenges in the future
