Web Services

Web Services is a collection of technologies based on open standards that make it possible for organizations to make individual service components available via a network to other systems, as well as, to its employees, customers, and business partners.  This technology connects different service components without custom-coded connections since they are built on open standards and share a common protocol.  

By facilitating new levels of collaboration, Web Services technology is prompting a re-evaluation of fundamental business processes along with the technical systems that support them.  The technology enables disparate software applications not only to integrate, but to communicate what data needs to be shared.  The compelling business value provided by the new possibilities for connecting and collaborating amongst organizations, is driving the consideration of Web Services technology throughout the industry.  Web Services provide the following benefits to meet the needs of the complex integration environment:

• Web Services can leverage the Internet, thereby eliminating the costs of VANs and private network lines;
• Web Services are platform independent.  The disparate systems of the business partners (Windows, Unix, Linux, etc) can communicate without the costs associated with establishing a separate connection point to support each type of system; and 
• Standards, and the fact that Web Services are self-describing with the Web Services Description Language (WSDL), provide the outline for IT departments to integrate with Web Services without having to coordinate with the individuals at the company who publishes them.

Web Services is emerging as a catalyst for Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA), the next generation architecture that extends the flexibility and reach of existing Information Technology (IT) infrastructure in enterprises.  An SOA is an application framework that makes it easy to reuse and combine the discrete business processes and services that make up your business. With an SOA you can build applications and integrate them across your organization.  SOA brings many benefits to the enterprise including:

• Achieved flexibility through interconnected functions and discrete business processes;
• Enhanced reuse in terms of shared services across multiple applications, business models, geographies etc.; and
• Preserved the investment in legacy systems.

At Edgewater Technology, our team of industry and technical consultants work closely with our clients to prove how rapidly they can move from evaluating the potential of business process transformation to realizing business value through process improvements, cost reduction and revenue growth.