1211 Safe and robust content distribution. Challenges and solutions related to Internet-based sharing of business critical documentation

We have studied challenges and some possible solutions for a demanding information sharing situation at Rolls-Royce Maritime AS (RRM). Rolls-Royce Maritime have a leading role in the North- West maritime cluster, with its equipment installed on 30 000 maritime vessels worldwide and international partnership with more than 2000 customers. Thus, it enters into many elaborate consortia and configurations of contractors working towards the delivery of a finished vessel, together with a varying and multifarious set of designers, yards, component suppliers, classification societies, auditors and consultants.

Rolls-Royce Maritime have to share documentation with all its partners, who are autonomous and numerous, and have independent and potentially incompatible information infrastructures. Some of these partners may already be part of, or may in the future enter into, other consortia with which Rolls-Royce are competing. Hence, information sharing has to be seen as a strategic undertaking.

This report discusses challenges of data protection, traceability, and version management as well as user administration overhead. It discusses one solution based on rsync in which the number of port numbers opened in the firewall is kept to a minimum. The solution relies on standard application software, open APIs and protocol, and hence it contributes to maintain a suitably loose coupling, in technical terms, of the partners involved. Moreover, it examines a replicated architecture from Syntergy, which would produce similar functionality in a packaged solution. Finally, an extension of the existing Open Text platform is suggested. Thus, we also contribute to the current research agenda in this area, looking at strategic issues as well as technological challenges of implementing a system of the type described.