49
was needed to allow an undisturbed access to project documentation, limited only by the
roles users hold in the project or company organization structure. Moreover, paper based
document workflow utilized at the time was already outdated, highly time consuming and
required to be replaced by electronic workflow of documents and tasks as soon as possible.
3 SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE AND FUNCTIONALITIES
3.1 Architecture
The architecture of the Project Management System has been based on Microsoft Project
Server 2010 and SharePoint Server 2010. Both products through their core functionalities
support project management and communication in big organizations. The main technical
challenge was to create efficient connection with SAP ERP system, that was already utilized
to support financial processes. Because the Project Management System required much more
flexibility then SAP ERP in terms of data modification, a dedicated application has been
developed to link both systems and ensure their compatibility.
The role of SAP ERP in accounting services remained unaffected, but it has been moved
to the background so it no longer needs to be directly accessed by the PMs. Apart from SAP
ERP, there are two other systems operating within the company that require data exchange
with Project Management System, these are: Contract Management System that store all
the information regarding signed contracts and Purchase Support System that allows to
manage procurement and purchase procedures. MS BizTalk Server has been chosen as a
mean of communication between internal and external elements of the environment. The
customized application guarantees safety of communication and prevents creating records in
external systems without user consent and control. A simplified system architecture scheme
is presented in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Project management system architecture.
Project Management System
Project Server 2010
Project
Schedule
management t--Resource assignment
1\ a ~
Resource
Workspace
management
(Risks, problems, documents)
~ "
"'
Portfolio
management
Dedicated Applications I
Administration
Project flle
Basic
infromation
,-----Project structure
Project products
Biz Talk
Budget
I
~
SAP
- -Purchases
~
Depriciation
Data exchange
I
Effects
~
I
Purchase
~
g. ~
support
--~ Q
system
I G lobal purchase plan I "'
I Contracts r
Portfolio managmmt r
management
--system
' -
was needed to allow an undisturbed access to project documentation, limited only by the
roles users hold in the project or company organization structure. Moreover, paper based
document workflow utilized at the time was already outdated, highly time consuming and
required to be replaced by electronic workflow of documents and tasks as soon as possible.
3 SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE AND FUNCTIONALITIES
3.1 Architecture
The architecture of the Project Management System has been based on Microsoft Project
Server 2010 and SharePoint Server 2010. Both products through their core functionalities
support project management and communication in big organizations. The main technical
challenge was to create efficient connection with SAP ERP system, that was already utilized
to support financial processes. Because the Project Management System required much more
flexibility then SAP ERP in terms of data modification, a dedicated application has been
developed to link both systems and ensure their compatibility.
The role of SAP ERP in accounting services remained unaffected, but it has been moved
to the background so it no longer needs to be directly accessed by the PMs. Apart from SAP
ERP, there are two other systems operating within the company that require data exchange
with Project Management System, these are: Contract Management System that store all
the information regarding signed contracts and Purchase Support System that allows to
manage procurement and purchase procedures. MS BizTalk Server has been chosen as a
mean of communication between internal and external elements of the environment. The
customized application guarantees safety of communication and prevents creating records in
external systems without user consent and control. A simplified system architecture scheme
is presented in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Project management system architecture.
Project Management System
Project Server 2010
Project
Schedule
management t--Resource assignment
1\ a ~
Resource
Workspace
management
(Risks, problems, documents)
~ "
"'
Portfolio
management
Dedicated Applications I
Administration
Project flle
Basic
infromation
,-----Project structure
Project products
Biz Talk
Budget
I
~
SAP
- -Purchases
~
Depriciation
Data exchange
I
Effects
~
I
Purchase
~
g. ~
support
--~ Q
system
I G lobal purchase plan I "'
I Contracts r
Portfolio managmmt r
management
--system
' -