Submission to Infrastructure Australia

Proposal in support of Collaborative Infrastructure

Transport and Logistics Centre (TALC)

Dr Daryll HullSeptember 2008

TALC is a public funded research and policy think tank whose mandate covers the transport and logistics (T&L) industry in Australia

The T&L industry is a critical enabler of the entire Australian economy

T&L contributes approximately 14.5% of GDP – more than mining and agriculture combined

It employs over 1,000,000 people across the country in every region, city and remote location

There are over 165,000 organisations /businesses in the industry

Average employment is less than 5 people per organisation – this is a sector of small business and diverse operations

TALC has created many programmes to assist the industry – go to www.talc.com.au

What is TALC and why does it have an interest in infrastructure?

The building of industry capability relies heavily on government intervention in all areas – especially the provision of infrastructure

Infrastructure in T&L consists of different categories of assets – physical, digital and collaborative

Physical assets comprise three types – economic, social and environmental

Digital assets comprise hardware and software

Collaborative assets comprise business and networks, clusters and social technologies for connecting people

Infrastructure Australia has an obligation to address all three types of assets in T&L in order to build national capability in this most critical sector of the Australian economy

What are the dimensions to infrastructure in T&L?

Infrastructure typically refers to the technical structures that support a society, such as roads, water supply, wastewater, power grids, flood management systems, communications (internet, phone lines, broadcasting), and so forth. In the past, these systems have typically been owned and managed by local or central governments. These various elements may collectively be termed civil infrastructure, municipal infrastructure, or simply public works, although they may be developed and operated as private-sector or government enterprises. A more generic definition of infrastructure is the network of assets "where the system as a whole is intended to be maintained indefinitely at a specified standard of service by the continuing replacement and refurbishment of its components."[1]

In other applications, infrastructure may refer to information technology, informal and formal channels of communication, software development tools, political and social networks, or beliefs held by members of particular groups. Still underlying these more general uses is the concept that infrastructure provides organizing structure and support for the system or organization it serves, whether it is a city, a nation, or a corporation. Economically, infrastructure could be seen to be the structural elements of an economy which allow for production of goods and services without themselves being part of the production process, e.g. roads allow the transport of raw materials and finished products.(1) Association of Local Government Engineers New Zealand: "Infrastructure Asset Management Manual", June 1998

- Edition 1.1

Definition of “infrastructure” from WIKIPEDIA online encyclopaedia

If we accept the previous excerpt from WIKIPEDIA as a working definition, then the notion of infrastructure broadens beyond a physical asset class to include digital, social and community assets

In T&L this is logical , as we find ourselves moving into the realm of 3PL and 4PL logistics systems – such systems require strong digital, communications, computing, organisation and management systems to ensure maximum effectiveness of physical assets

There is a case to be made that further development of T&L physical infrastructure should be combined with a parallel development of digital and social infrastructure, utilising our latest understanding of collaborative technologies and social systems

It is also likely that a combination of public and private capital and skills will be required to make best use of the various technologies and opportunities in T&L

The following pages outline the “big picture” in T&L infrastructure

T&L – a special case in infrastructure development?

PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE =

PORTS, ROADS, RAIL, WAREHOUSES,CONCRETE, STEEL, STRUCTURES,BUILDING, MOVING, STORING

DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE =

BROADBAND, SATELLITES, MOBILE PHONES, COMPUTERS, INTERNET, COMMUNICATION, DATA, ACCESS, OPEN, FAST, EVERYWHERE

COLLABORATIVE INFRASTRUCTURE =

COMMUNITIES, NETWORKS, REGIONS, BUSINESS GROUPS, FORUMS, LEARNING, SHARING, CREATING, COMPETING, CONTENT

PHYSICALINFRASTRUCTURE

QUESTIONS:

LOCATION?COST?OWNERSHIP?ACCESS?FUNDING?INTEGRATION?MAINTENANCE?USAGE?INVESTMENT?ENVIRONMENT?ENERGY?

DIGITALINFRASTRUCTURE

QUESTIONS:

ACCESS?SPEED?BANDWIDTH?TECHNOLOGY?SECURITY?FUNDING?OWNERSHIP?INVESTMENT?INTEGRATION?USAGE?COST?

COLLABORATIVEINFRASTRUCTURE

QUESTIONS:

CONNECTIVITY?COMMUNITY?VALUES?PARTICIPATION?ACCESS?COMPLEXITY?SHARING?SUSTAINING?NETWORKING?COMMONALITY?MEMBERSHIP?

EACH ONE LINKS TO THE OTHERS

FEEDBACK CONNECTS ALL OF THEM, AND THEY OFTEN INHABIT MORE THAN ONE SPACE AT THE SAME TIME

SIMPLIFIED MATRIX OF ASSET TYPE BY ASSET FUNCTIONALITY

ECONOMIC TYPE SOCIAL TYPE ENVIRONMENTAL TYPE

PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

ROADS, PORTS, BRIDGES, RAILWAYS, POWER STATIONS, WATER WORKS

SCHOOLS, COLLEGES, HOSPITALS, PARKS, COMMUNITY CENTRES

WATER, SOIL AND AIR QUALITY ASSETS, DAMS, IRRIGATION SCHEMES

DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE

BROADBAND, SATELLITES, FIBRE NETWORKS, EXCHANGES, MOBILE DATA TERMINALS, RFID

MOBILE PHONES, PERSONAL COMPUTERS, PUBLIC ACCESS TERMINALS

SATELLITE MAPPING AND MONITORING SYSTEMS, REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS

COLLABORATIVE INFRASTRUCTURE

ONLINE FREIGHT MATCHING, VIRTUAL CONTAINER PARKS, WEB 2.0 PORTALS

COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE, RESEARCH ASSOCIATIONS, INDUSTRY FORUMS

EMISSIONS TRADING SCHEMES, ENVIROMENTAL WEB GATEWAYS

Collaborative infrastructure – why bother?

Reach – by its nature (virtual and social) collaborative infrastructure can provide maximum reach across the chosen community. It is limited only by access to the Internet, formation of communities of interest and general access via membership. In theory as well as practice a good piece of collaborative infrastructure can reach 100% of a selected audience

Results – collaborative infrastructure builds shared ownership of ideas and assets. It constitutes a powerful mechanism for implantation of strategy and programmes because it builds support as it goes

Resources – this class of infrastructure asset is not capital intensive. Once it is set up the operating costs are spread across the community of interest. Maintenance costs are limited to the software architecture and ICT technologies utilised in the asset

Risk - failure of a collaborative asset is easily accommodated through “switching off” the asset, and if necessary reconstituting it under another banner or group

Collaborative infrastructure – value for money?

relatively low set up costs enhances digital and physical assets minimal labour costs minimal operating costs low maintenance maximum reach for any given audience able to create community ownership of asset and ideas low risk supports regional development supports small business creates new business services in Web 2.0 applications scalable flexible possibility of open access possibility of open standards

TALC offers TILIS ® as an example of national Collaborative Infrastructure

• TILIS® stands for Totally Intelligent Logistics Inquiry Service

• TILIS® was developed by TALC over three years and is now available to industry

• TILIS® establishes a national transport and logistics (T&L) industry web gateway

• TILIS® is a piece of shared digital infrastructure focused on the T&L industry, designed to provide high levels of interconnection between many users and providers of useful information, business services, industry knowledge and new ideas

• TILIS® is demonstrated at www.tilis.com.au

TILIS® is hard to grasp

Most people don’t

• care about the intricacies of computing and communications

• care about infrastructure (especially if it is virtual!)• want to deal with the complexity• want to have to understand it

but they do want

• someone to ‘build’ it for them • it to work for them• access when they want, how they want

So let’s think in physical terms

Think about a shipping port, airport, or similar, they :

• are major investments in infrastructure and networks• are common capabilities everyone can use thus increasing their

activities• stimulate volume activity, thus cost reduction and value are

positively affected (Moore Principle) • connect local with global• are solutions driven by social and business needs, not the

technology solutions that underpin their operation• encourage use of scalable, reliable existing technology• use standards to maximise connection and efficiencies• connect multiple supply chains seamlessly

(THIS PROBABLY SOUNDS FAMILIAR)

Now think of TILIS® as a digital port

• In the digital space you can build infrastructure fast, once and anyone, anywhere can use it

• There is no current national digital port for the T&L industry

• TILIS® takes for form and shape of the desired industry application. It can be an education and training portal, a business exchange, a publishing/news portal or a simple discovery tool

• TILIS® can work to connect many groups simultaneously across the web, or it can act as an enterprise system working within the business to connect individuals who need to share knowledge e.g. HR professionals

TILIS® as a digital “port”

Like a physical port TILIS® is a digital solution that can provide:

1. A gateway that is both a map and single access point to the T&L industry

2. Infrastructure able to be configured to users needs and preferences

3. National network hub connecting and adding volume to local Web sites and services in the T&L or other industries

4. Network able to transition only one-to-one business supply chains to the new many-to-many global marketplaces

5. Shared infrastructure capability for everyone in the industry, public or private can leverage to reduce their operational expenditure while maximising value

6. Benchmark standards for connections, content and knowledge sharing

TILIS® maps the industry

TILIS® is:

• An ATLAS = A view of the transport and logisticsindustry based on your needs and preferences

• A MAP = A repository of destinations anddata

• A GPS = A registry that allows you todiscover where you are and searchfor digital information that helps you get where you need to go

By being virtual TILIS is more dynamic and able to be oriented to the user needs and preferences. This differentiates it from a mere website, which is a static and limited information source

TILIS® removes noise and can be configured to your needs

TILIS® connects and adds volume to existing networks

TILIS® moves beyond the one to many marketplace

Government

Educational institutions

Professional Bodies

Industry Assoc.

Enterprises

A

D

C

B

E

H

G

F

Sector(Air, road, rail,

etc..)

Qualification(School, VTE,

Higher education, etc.)

Occupation & Careers

Demographics(Age, gender,

etc.

Location(Vic, QLD, NSW, SA,

etc.)

Key words

Etc...

Content Owners Users/Clients Sorting

Etc...

One provider to multiple users with a complex array of expensive assets that require massive, duplicated capital investment

TILIS® enables the many to many marketplace

Government

Educational institutions

Professional Bodies

Industry Assoc.

Enterprises

A

D

C

B

E

H

G

F

Sector(Air, road, rail,

etc..)

Qualification(School, VTE,

Higher education, etc.)

Occupation & Careers

Demographics(Age, gender,

etc.

Location(Vic, QLD, NSW, SA,

etc.)

Key words

Etc...

Content Owners Users/Clients Sorting

Etc...

Transport and Logistics Integrated Learning & Information Service

(Industry Web gateway)

Many users connecting once, with reducing and sharing infrastructure to address:- Interoperation- Metadata- Classification- Search- Discovery- Identity management - Access rights- Reuse- Digital rights

TILIS® can be the first of manyTILIS® will be the first iteration of a ‘industry-side’ digital infrastructure providing shared, mostly open source solutions for:

– User-oriented Web and portal design (W3C and national standards will be applied)

– Discovery and access to content by implementing the Content Object Repository Discovery and Registration Architecture model (provides the first global standard for linking any content repository to any user based on the content owner’s permissions)

– Access management and identity management solutions

– Learning and technical object exchange through application of ADL Sharable Content Object Reference Model and European Association of Aerospace Industries S1000D

TILIS® uses global standards

Singapore

IMS Asia

PROMETEUS

CEN/ISSSISO/IEC JTC1 SC36

ARIADNE

ALIC & AEN

Dublin Core

AICC

API and CMI data model based on the AICC CMI document and widespread SCORM usage are now approved IEEE standards.

LOM (metadata) is an approved IEEE standard.

CETIS/JISC

eLIG

From Dan Rehak (2005) ADL UpdateSCORM 2004 and CORDRA

Technical view of TILIS®

FMS = freight matching serviceLMS = learning Management SystemCMS = Content Management SystemLINC = South Australian Logistics Information Navigation Centre

PortfolioHRISTradegateIntermodal Terminal

META DATA and Web Services

Synergistic Layer

Tools/Objects and Services

Integration LayerCORDRA, QTI etc

Core Business Systems

User Interface

Interpretive Layer

Snap-in

Interoperable protocol

TILIS

LINC TOOLS CMS LMS FMS

TILIS® gateway and content providers

Public Individualgateway interfaces (client “windows”)

User data(Administration)Portfolios

LMS Competency

University TAFET&L

companyAssociationsTILIS clients

SearchDocument

librarygateway Applications(“services”)

Individuals

Organisation

Content providers

…

…

Resources

National TILIS® (APPLICATION)EXAMPLE: integrate TILIS® CORDRA iteration with national

education infrastructure

…

CORDRA interface TILIS Identifiers

Content Exchange(shared repository)

University TAFETransport company

Assoc.

National services CORDRA RegistryAccess and Identifier

infrastructure

Infrastructure services

Content

Content

TILIS® can become part of an Federated national or State solution

CORDRARegistry

CORDRARegistry

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository CORDRA

Registry

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

ContentRepository

CORDRARegistry

FederationRepository

FederationCatalog

FederationRegistry

TILIS (T&L CORDRA I teration)

CORDRA Implementation

CORDRA Implementation

CORDRA Implementation

NationalFederatedCORDRA

After Dan Rehak ADL UpdateSCORM 2004 and CORDRA, Nov 2005

The TILIS pilot was completed in June 2007

TILIS®. Totally.

The first of many:

Mining

Health

Water

Manufacturing

Tourism

Energy

the list is long!

A federated Web 2.0 gateway project