Advancing Cloud-Edge Applications Through Fog-Cloud Integration and Low-Latency Edge Solutions: A Narrative Case Study From Veterans Engineering

This article presents a narrative case study that explores Veterans Engineering's (VE) deployment of hybrid edge-cloud architectures within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) enterprise system. The primary research question guiding this investigation is: To what extent does existing literature on models of hybrid edge-cloud computing and latency reduction reflect the practical realities encountered by technical teams during implementation within federal enterprise systems? Drawing on empirical insights from the Cloud Advisory Services (CAS) and Cloud Infrastructure and Advisory Services (CIAS) projects deployed at VA medical sites based in non-continental jurisdictions, this study compares VE's operational findings with established theoretical constructs. The analysis reveals critical disconnects in areas such as cross-domain interoperability, organizational change dynamics, stakeholder coordination, security and compliance practices, and the impact of bureaucratic constraints. Based on these findings, this paper outlines strategic recommendations for engineers and architects working in regulated environments, emphasizing governance alignment, modular orchestration, localized edge-fog deployment, proactive change management, layered security with AI-driven observability, and enhanced user experience in bandwidthconstrained settings.