FHWA

Data Integration Primer

August 2010

Table of Contents

• 1. Note From the Director
• 2. Overview
  • 2.1. What is Transportation Asset Management?
  • 2.2. Why is Transportation Asset Management Important?
  • 2.3 The Role of Data in Transportation Asset Management
  • 2.4 The Status of Transportation Asset Management Implementation
  • 2.5 Transportation Asset Management Tools Development
• 3. What is Data Integration?
  • 3.1. The Goals
  • 3.2. The Workshop
  • 3.3. The Primer
• 4. Why Integrate Data?
  • 4.1. Data Integration Benefits
    • 4.1.1. Integrated Decision-making
    • 4.1.2. Safety Analysis
    • 4.1.3. Other Benefits
    • 4.1.4. Supporting Core TAM Requirements
• 5. How to Integrate Data
  • 5.1. The Team
  • 5.2. Requirements Analysis
    • 5.2.1. Business Processes
    • 5.2.2. User Requirements
    • 5.2.3. Organizational Characteristics
    • 5.2.4. Information Systems Infrastructure
    • 5.2.5. Database and Database Management Characteristics
  • 5.3. Data and Process Flow Modeling
  • 5.4. Alternatives Definition, Evaluation, and Selection
    • 5.4.1. Fused Databases
    • 5.4.2. Interoperable Databases
    • 5.4.3. Evaluation and Selection of Alternatives
  • 5.5. Database Design and Specifications
    • 5.5.1. Data Models
    • 5.5.2. Data Standards
    • 5.5.3. Data Reference Systems
    • 5.5.4. The Importance of Metadata
    • 5.5.5. The Data Dictionary
    • 5.5.6. Software and Hardware Requirements
      • 5.5.6.1. Database Server
      • 5.5.6.2. Database Management Systems
      • 5.5.6.3. Geographic Information Systems
      • 5.5.6.4. Commercial Off the Shelf Packages (COTS)
      • 5.5.6.5. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software
  • 5.6. Development, Testing, Training, and Implementation
  • 5.7. Summary
• 6. Challenges to Data Integration
  • 6.1. Heterogeneous Data
  • 6.2. Bad Data
  • 6.3. Lack of Storage Capacity
  • 6.4. Unanticipated Costs
  • 6.5. Lack of Cooperation from Staff
  • 6.6. Lack of Data Management Expertise
  • 6.7. Perception of Data Integration as an Overwhelming Effort
• 7. Conclusion
• List of Figures
  • Figure 1: Asset Management Framework
  • Figure 2: The Data Integration Process
  • Figure 3: Data and Process Flow: A Bridge Example
  • Figure 4: Data Integration Alternatives
• List of Tables
  • Table 1: Data Integration Benefits to Specific TAM Requirements
  • Table 2: Comparison of Fused and Interoperable Databases
  • Table 3: MetaData Sample Scheme

This document updates FHWA-IF-01-016 - "Data Integration Primer," August 2005.

Presented by

FHWA-IF-10-019