Abstract

Abstract
Virtual enterprise integration (VEI) is virtually the most critical success factor for making virtual enterprise (VE) a real, competitive, and widely implemented organizational and management concept. However, according to many authors, the present solutions for VEI are either insufficient or inexistent. One of the reasons for the situation is the failure of the approach of "traditional" information systems and organizations to dealing with the nowadays turbulent market and organizations' requirements, where actual VEI solutions are mainly sought. This chapter presents a discussion on the VEI issue as a contribution to a better understanding of the VEI phenomenon, and it could be seen as a contribution to an eventual framework for VEI science, engineering, development, and implementation. Also, two metatheoretical structures for VEI research and development are proposed: VEI abstractions hierarchy and VEI semiotics. © 2005, Idea Group Inc.

Abstract

Abstract

Abstract
The development of techniques under geographical information system (GIS) platforms, such as geocomputational modeling, which increase the capabilities of GIS, allowing the systems to adapt to optimal distributed generation (DG) planning studies, is discussed. Using adequate software under the GIS platform, users can obtain useful information on the economic or technical viability of any distributed power generation facilities. GIS offers a variety of structured data models suitable for the storage, manipulation, and analysis of the information needed in DG planning. GIS can also be used in DG planning to study negotiation processes among different energy actors to look for geographical planning solutions.

Abstract