Automated workflow for engineering services

In the future users will request engineering services automatically much like we request stock quotes and weather reports today. Rather than requesting an engineering service directly from an engineer, a user will request the service from an automated server, which can be accessed from a web browser or other computer applications. The engineer's duties will shift to maintaining and enhancing the automated services, and performing expert-level analysis. This paradigm shift is beneficial to the engineer who is currently burdened with providing repetitive services. It is also beneficial to the users, who will receive a faster response from an automated server than a person can provide. This paper argues that service technology is sufficiently mature to provide many engineering services reliably and securely. It also illustrates a methodology for creating engineering services using the engineering applications that today's engineers use to provide their services. Once automated engineering services are available, they can be used in conjunction with a workflow management system to transform engineering processes in the same way business processes have been transformed in the last decade. This paper describes a prototype of an automated workflow system, developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, that provides navigation and telecommunication services.