Enterprise Integration Platform as a Services (EiPaas) Role in Enterprise Systems

Nowadays, growing applications on-cloud, complex databases enterprises require data exchange between systems to be seamless without friction. Enterprise Integration connects critical systems and applications across on-premise and cloud platforms. There may be a need to integrate the systems from on-premise to cloud platforms to integrate the data. Some Enterprise Integration types are Application Integration, Data Integration, Process Integration, and Device Integration. Modern business applications are having problems while cloud integrations. Several vendors offer iPaaS (Integration Platform as a Service) and EiPaaS (Enterprise Integration Platform as a Service) solutions to address cloud integration solutions. 

iPaaS is a cloud platform that connects different systems and technologies developed in the cloud or on-premise. 

EiPaas, connects different applications, systems, and technologies within the cloud platforms or on-premise to integrate business processes/data. Gartner defines EiPaaS as a combination of integration technology functionalities delivered as a suite of cloud services designed to support enterprise-class integration initiatives. 

EiPaaS Role in Enterprise Architecture

EiPaaS combines cloud-centric technologies and API management capabilities to handle the application's connectivity and integrations. EiPaaS is best after iPaaS to increase autonomy, improve connectivity and governance, and enforce policies. In addition, eiPaaS solutions help the legacy infrastructure connect to cloud platforms seamlessly. 

Critical capabilities of EiPaaS are a wide range of protocol connectivity, application connectors, database connectors, routing/orchestration, policy enforcement, community management, and CI/CD. Below is the blueprint of the EiPaaS platform as follows:

The top features of EiPaaS platforms are API-powered integrations, Integration governance, Data Interchange Management, IoT compatibility, marketplace, and flexible deployment options.

Trends in EiPaaS Platforms

Data Control and Silos elimination: Data flow between systems or migrated systems is crucial, and that should be controlled and silos.

Hybrid Integration Platforms: Organizations adopting hybrid-based solutions to move their applications from legacy to cloud.

Centralized Integrations: Internal and external systems are connected and centralized for easy maintenance.

CI/CD adoption: Helps the teams to enforce deployment strategy.

Advantages of Using EiPaaS in Enterprise Architecture

• Seamless connectivity between systems and subsystems – Internal/external systems.
• Decoupling the applications and easily configurable.
• Effective utilization of cloud features.
• The flexibility of deployment models.
• Prebuild connectors
• Secured
• Workflow Orchestrations
• Real-time integration
• Centralized Interfaces

In the digital transformation process, EiPaaS solutions are beneficial to process the data arriving at the hub. Several iPaaS vendors/players help the organizations to support integration challenges. The following are the significant players in iPaaS/EiPaaS platforms for the last couple of years.

Informatica: Intelligent Cloud Services is an iPaaS platform from Informatica powered by Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. It comes with an event-driven and real-time data exchange platform along with a wide range of products like ETL, Batch, etc., and it helps with seamless integration of cloud and on-premise applications. In addition, it provides features like Data integration checks, quality, and governance.

CLAIRE is AI and ML engine that helps to automate data management and governance tasks. Ideal for large data sets to process.

MuleSoft: Most popular iPaaS platform from Mule. Anypoint platform combines the capabilities of cloud and on-premise integrations seamlessly. Supports lifecycle and development of APIs, monitoring, and analytics. Different silos systems are connected using the Anypoint platform with prebuilt APIs, connectors, and other assets. In 2022, the Anypoint platform will continue as the leading iPaaS.

Boomi: Introduced iPaaS platform by Dell in 2008 (currently called Boomi) with five applications as Integration, Hub, Exchange, Mediate, and Flow. Leading provider of EiPaaS platform for several years. Non-tech users build automated integrations by using pallets provided by the tool.

Jitterbit: Data and application integration platform was provided by Jitterbit. Provides API-centric features to connect different types of cloud-based systems with on-premises systems. Provided user-friendly UI to build integrations for both non-techy and techy guys

Oracle SOA: Oracle SOA builds on cloud adaptors, Ftp/file services, different integration services, and developer tools. Capable of SOA features and migration of a separate application from on-premise to cloud and vice-versa. It supports IoT and mobile technologies. 100+ adopters are available to connect to different systems like SAP, Siebel, and Other systems. Very much suitable for high-volume integrations.

Workato: Workato platform was built as low code leveraging the mix of API and GUI connectors. Workato contains 1000+ prebuilt connectors to connect different systems and 500000+ read-to-use "recipe" preconfigured workflows.

In digital transformation initiatives, EiPaaS platforms are critical to transforming data between systems or applications. Various vendors offer tools and technologies to support integrations between systems in the cloud or on-premise. Although the tools mentioned above are minimal, many players in the market support the EiPaas platform.