EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) Explained for Non-Developers.

At a Glance.

• Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) is the integration or connection of isolated company applications into a seamless, networked ecosystem.
• EAI can be implemented using various architectures that differ in terms of complexity and scalability.
• Companies should prepare an EAI strategy that includes taking inventory of the IT landscape, selecting the appropriate architecture, and deciding whether and which integration solution is best.
• Lobster offers you an API-based integration platform that acts as middleware and automates the data flow between multiple applications and various systems.

They still exist in many companies: isolated IT applications that don’t communicate with each other. Data has to be laboriously transferred by hand, business processes run slowly and with interruptions, and important decisions are based on outdated information. The result? Inefficiency and high costs. The solution? Enterprise Application Integration – an approach that connects all business applications and enables seamless communication between ERP (enterprise resource planning), CRM (customer relationship management), BI (business intelligence), SCM (supply chain management), and other business-critical application systems.

In this article, you’ll learn what EAI is, what advantages it offers, and what strategies you can use to successfully implement the integration of enterprise applications within your business.

What is EAI (Enterprise Application Integration)?

EAI refers to the various methods, processes, and technologies that help to connect different enterprise applications into an efficient overall system (integration).

EAI aims to break down data silos – i.e. systems that are isolated from each other – thus helping to streamline the exchange of data between applications. And it does so regardless of which programming language or communication protocol they use or which platform they run on.

How Does Enterprise Application Integration Work?

EAI can be implemented in a wide variety of ways. As the individual underlying architectures differ in terms of their structure, efficiency, and scalability, the selection of the appropriate model depends on the individual requirements and the existing IT infrastructure of a company.

Point-to-Point (P2P).

With point-to-point connections, applications are connected directly in order to exchange data bilaterally. Each application requires a dedicated interface for each connection to another application.

This can be a cost-effective and fast integration option for less complex IT landscapes with a small number of endpoints.

However, as complexity grows, scaling P2P architectures becomes challenging since a new interface must be built for each additional component. Maintenance is also very time-consuming – changes in one system usually also entail changes in all connected systems.

Hub and Spokes.

In the so-called star architecture or hub and spoke model, a central node (hub) handles communication between the connected applications (spokes). Applications share their data exclusively via the hub.

Compared to point-2-point integration, the hub-and-spoke model has one clear advantage: instead of setting up numerous interfaces in each individual application, new systems only need to be connected to the central hub.

However, this can also become a problem, for example if the hub breaks down and, as a single point of failure, all connected systems are suddenly no longer able to communicate with each other.

Enterprise Service Bus (ESB).

The service bus architecture has a similar structure to the hub-and-spokes architecture, but unlike the hub as the only control point, it enables distributed control. Methods include:

• Message-Oriented Middleware (MOM): In this approach, messages between the connected applications are sent via a message broker, for example. This enables both synchronous and asynchronous communication, as message queues can be set up.
• Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA): In service-oriented architectures, applications are seen as a collection of microservices that can be called up as required via standardised interfaces.

These approaches help to decouple systems. For example, if there is a change in one application, this has less impact on other applications. ESB integration is also very flexible, as a wide range of communication protocols such as REST, SOAP, or MQTT are supported.

However, setting up and maintaining the architecture is very complex and cost-intensive. A powerful setup with options for load distribution is needed to prevent performance problems, for example if too many messages have to be processed at once.

API-Based Integration.

With API-based integration, applications communicate with each other via programming interfaces (Application Programming Interface, API). If required, the API is called via an API gateway, which forwards the request and also manages the delivery of the response. In contrast to Enterprise Service Bus, the API-based architecture does away with the central node and instead creates a network of applications and systems that are completely decentralised.

Thanks to the decentralised infrastructure, new systems can easily be added to the network via APIs. If an application fails completely, it has no or only limited impact on other connected applications and systems. APIs also enable high-performance, real-time communication and are ideal for modern cloud or hybrid environments.

However, it’s important to remember that API-based architectures call for good API management. API design and documentation are just as important as the security and maintenance of the APIs used.

5 Important Benefits of EAI for Companies.

Modern enterprise application integration with an ESB or API-based architecture offer various advantages to help companies stay competitive.

1. Breaking up Data Silos.

Gone are the days when customers were manually in each individual system. Or when a department updated customer data in the CRM without having to update the ERP system. Data and application integration synchronises data across systems. This means that all departments, whether marketing, sales, accounting, production, or logistics, can access the same up-to-date data, which greatly reduces the susceptibility to errors.

2. Automation of Processes.

When applications and systems are interconnected, automated workflows and business processes can be established across departments.

So, if a customer places an order in an online store, for example, there’s no need for the team to manually generate the invoice, look up shipping address details, update inventory levels, or send an email to the customer.

Instead, when the order is placed, the stock is automatically updated in the warehouse management system, the order data is forwarded to the ERP system for invoicing, and order and shipping confirmations are sent to the customer – all without errors in quantities or item numbers, which greatly improves data quality.

3. Flexible Connection of New Systems.

Whether on-premises, hybrid, or in the cloud: new systems can be quickly and easily integrated into your own IT infrastructure. This enables companies to respond to changing business requirements with greater flexibility.

A decentralised EAI also makes it possible to integrate legacy software and old systems into a modern environment and use the data collected there.

4. Data-Based Decisions.

Data integration provides a 360-degree view of customer and partner data, production, warehouse, and delivery information, as well as sales and marketing KPIs and much more, synchronised almost in real time.

On the one hand, this creates a sound database for reporting to managers so that decisions can be made on a data-driven basis. On the other hand, transparent data analyses make it much easier to implement legal regulations and compliance guidelines.

5. Significant Cost Savings.

All the advantages mentioned above help to save costs: breaking down data silos improves collaboration between departments, saving time and money. The automation of business processes also frees up working time for other important tasks. In addition, errors caused by manual data processing, which can become expensive, are eliminated.

Cloud integration reduces the maintenance effort of individual systems and thus saves IT resources. Last but not least, the risk of fines due to a lack of compliance is significantly reduced.

3 Strategies for EAI Implementation.

Successfully implementing EAI requires a balanced mix of technical expertise, strategic planning, and a solid understanding of your organisation’s specific IT needs. Companies should therefore draw up a concrete plan as to which EAI architecture is best for them and which requirements any integration solution should fulfil.

1. Determine the Status Quo of Each Department.

Before starting with the actual integration, a detailed list of all systems used must be drawn up. Organisations should ask themselves the following questions:

• What software solutions are used in my company? These include large, proprietary applications such as ERP systems as well as small open-source tools.
• Which (business-critical) processes and workflows are carried out with each system?
• Is an application a legacy system? If so, is it integral enough to the company for it to keep running? Or would it be better to replace the legacy system with a more modern solution?
• Which (point-to-point) integrations already exist between IT systems? Should these be retained because they are specifically tailored to the infrastructure?

2. Select a Suitable EAI Architecture.

Point-to-point, hub-and-spokes, enterprise service bus or API-based? The choice of EAI architecture depends firstly on the size of the company and the number of applications used, and secondly on the company-specific requirements for the architecture.

• For small companies that only use a few applications, P2P integration is often sufficient as it is quite cost-effective.
• Hub-and-spoke integration is a good choice for companies looking to connect multiple systems while maintaining centralised control, especially if they only expect limited scaling in the future.
• Enterprise Service Bus integration is ideal for large companies with complex applications and a heterogeneous, hybrid system landscape that needs to integrate a wide range of technologies and protocols and remain scalable in the long term.
• An API-based architecture is also a good choice for large companies with complex infrastructures that also require a connection to external environments. It is therefore particularly suitable for cloud-native applications and the integration of partner ecosystems. API integrations are also usually cheaper and much more scalable than ESB architectures.

3. Decide on an EAI Solution.

If companies do not have the internal know-how and development resources to implement EAI efficiently in-house, they should opt for one of the EAI solutions available on the market. A good EAI system fulfills the following requirements:

• Expandability and Flexibility: EAI solutions must be able to grow with the company and adapt to business changes. Therefore, businesses should rely on EAI tools that offer various technologies for integration and, in the best case, even provide ready-made, reusable adapters for the most common systems.
• Security and Compliance: Solutions that integrate different applications and data sources must be robust against security threats while ensuring the integrity of sensitive data. This includes adequate encryption and granular authorsation management as well as compliance with relevant data protection laws.
• Monitoring and Logging: Continuous monitoring and automatic logging of all activities are essential for detecting suspicious behaviour or system failures early on and resolving them quickly. That’s why you should choose a solution that includes these features, such as event log analysis.
• Training and Onboarding: Introducing integration solutions not only involves new software with new capabilities, but also a steep learning curve for its users. Opting for a user-friendly solution that offers an easy introduction to the software as well as training at different levels is therefore essential. This increases the likelihood of uniform deployment across all departments and significantly promotes acceptance of the new tool within the company.

Integrate Applications Easily via API: Enterprise Application Integration With Lobster.

Wondering how to find a solution that meets all of the above requirements and more? Look no further: you’ve found Lobster!

Our cloud-based Integration Platform as a Service acts as a middleware, i.e. a bridge between all your disparate systems, ensuring smooth data exchange and transformation of all common data formats and industry standards.

Best of all, you don’t even need programming skills to create integrations. Simply use our numerous ready-made connectors and templates for interfaces to connect systems such as SAP-ALE, IBM Data Queue, X.400 or WebDAV. Conveniently, database integration with Lobster (e.g. MS SQL, Oracle, MongoDB, etc.) is based on drag-and-drop.