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Operations Systems Architecture (OSA) refers to the conceptual design that defines the structure and/or behavior of an operations system. It describes the framework of how Operations Technology (OT) will be applied to meet business objectives.

Operations Systems Architecture (OSA) can be applied to a wide range of organ-izations such as Manufacturing, Retail, Consulting, Mining, Distribution, Airlines etc. When the OSA is applied within Manufacturing companies it can be referred to as a Manufacturing Systems Architecture (MSA). The concepts are not restrict-ed to any specific domain. Most businesses have operational components such as mining, energy and even retail chains, which can be considered as manufacturers which produce a capability or product. OSA concepts apply equally to all of these domains. The definition of operations systems architecture for an operations system is in-fluenced by many factors including the environment (technology, culture, corpo-rate structure, location etc.) and challenges in terms of business objectives (agility, product mix, supply chain etc.). The architecture can be expressed in different arti-facts (documents, principles, pictures, schematics, requirements, specifications and standards, etc.) to fit in with the environment. In practice, these representations are frequently disconnected due to physical, cul-tural and business boundaries.

The representations of architecture for operations sites in an organizationoften varies depending on history (upgrade schedule, ownership etc.) and relationships across engineering teams, information technology and operations groups at each plant and between plants. These aspects provide a number of challenges to improving operating efficiency and agility. Without a common reference point and language, it is more difficult to have discussions and leverage best practices across divisions.

The development of a common operations systems architecture using standard tools and technology references is an important foundation for tackling these challenges. Considering best practices from other practitioners reduces the “reinvent-ing the wheel” scenario. Leveraging industry and technology standards allows documented concepts to be recognized by others (vendors, integrators, etc.) due to their likely exposure to those standards during prior engagements.

RELATIONSHIP OF OSA TO ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE

Many companies have an interpretation of Enterprise Architecture as a definition and a framework for applying the architecture in practice. Enterprise Architecture has traditionally been applied in Information Technology (IT) domains, and is important to reference when introducing OSA into a discussion. The definition used in this document is from MIT Centre for Information Systems Research who define Enterprise architecture as “The organizing logic for business processes and IT infrastructure reflecting the integration and standardization re-quirements of the firms operating model”. Togaf created by the Open Foundation is a popular framework used by IT groups to define the capability, development method, content and tools for defin-ing and applying an enterprise architecture. In Togaf a company can define one or many enterprises. Operations can be considered an enterprise in Togaf terms and OSA is defining the enterprise architecture for the operations enterprise. From an Enterprise architecture viewpoint, Operations Systems Architecture (OSA) can be considered to be the application of Enterprise Architecture (EA) concepts to the Operations component of a company. From an OSA perspective the OSA provides an operations centric framework compared to Togaf and leverages other tools (e.g. Gartner Brick model ) and specifications. It extends and refines the Enterprise Architecture to meet the needs of Operations

HISTORY

Operations Systems Architecture (OSA) was first described in a paper submitted to World Batch Forum (WBF) and the International Society of Automation (ISA) publication by Gavan Hood a member of both organizations in 2011 while he was director of Simul-Tech Pty Ltd a company focused on architecture and delivery of solutions in the Operations Technology field. The full publication can be viewed in the organizations list of publications in 2012 or from the members site at Simul-Tech.com.