Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home Applications
    • Applications

    Planting XML in The Enterprise

    Written by

    Anne Chen
    Published February 26, 2001
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Agribusinesses helping to create the AgXML standard have learned that getting competitors pulling in the same direction can be a big and difficult task. In some respects, however, its just the tip of a much larger iceberg. Thats because companies such as Cargill Inc. plan to use standards like AgXML not just to build business-to-business lines to outside partners and suppliers but also to integrate internal systems and processes. And that will require process and system overhauls that will ripple across the enterprise.

      “Weve discovered over the last couple of years pounding away at XML as a whole that its easy to think through conceptually, but youre talking about potentially huge changes in your business,” said Mel Menke, business integration manager for the Cargill North America Grain and Oilseed Crush business unit, in Wayzata, Minn. “Were talking about dealing with a whole new technical arena. Its exciting.”

      Officials at Cargill said they believe XML will be the perfect technology for linking together currently separate internal processes and systems.

      The company, for example, at present runs multiple grain origination transaction systems, applications used to account for the purchase and payment of grain. And John Von Stein, vice president of IT for Cargill North America Grain, said hed like those systems to talk to one another as easily as they will eventually talk to outside entities using the same AgXML standards. That wont be happening any time soon, however. For one thing, Cargill will have to wait for the AgXML standard tags and schemata to be developed.

      On the road to such interoperability, Cargill has created its own internal working groups to track standards like AgXML. AgXML group members such as Cheryl Gielau, a senior data analyst, and Michael Dockham, IT architect for Cargill North America Food Ingredients, participate in a Cargill-specific XML peer group that meets on a biweekly basis. There, colleagues from all Cargills divisions, including shipping and finance and accounting, gather to discuss how evolving industry-specific standards will affect the company in the future.

      While Cargill has big plans to use AgXML to integrate systems and processes within its food industry supply chain, the company would like to take it a step further. The idea is to use standard XML tags for enterprisewide integration, linking divisions that may even be in different industries. Besides agribusiness, Cargill is involved in the steel and financial industries.

      So far, the company is considering the idea of at least reconciling some of the most common types of names and attributes—such as “customer name” and “ship to”—used by its divisions in different industries, Dockham said. From there, the company will build industry-specific vocabularies on top of those common names and XML expressions.

      “Ultimately, it would be nice to use the same [schemata] internally and externally and be able to talk with partners and suppliers just as we talk to one another internally,” Dockham said. “Thats our overriding goal.”

      “There are barriers to entry, including the changes well make to our infrastructure and cost,” Menke said. “We constantly question ourselves about why we are participating in this. The fact is, to be able to minimize costs makes the effort worthwhile.”

      Anne Chen
      Anne Chen
      As a senior writer for eWEEK Labs, Anne writes articles pertaining to IT professionals and the best practices for technology implementation. Anne covers the deployment issues and the business drivers related to technologies including databases, wireless, security and network operating systems. Anne joined eWeek in 1999 as a writer for eWeek's eBiz Strategies section before moving over to Labs in 2001. Prior to eWeek, she covered business and technology at the San Jose Mercury News and at the Contra Costa Times.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.