Sparx Systems Partners with Xtensible Solutions

North America based utility specialist joins with global UML tool developer to address market growth and opportunities.

Creswick, Australia, July 1, 2009 – Sparx Systems, a leading vendor of modeling tools based on open standards, today announced a new partnership with utility consultancy organization, Xtensible Solutions. The partnership follows the recent success of Sparx Systems' flagship modeling platform, Enterprise Architect, within the utility sector. Enterprise Architect is used widely by electric power companies to manage their information architectures and the tool was recently adopted within the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) for maintaining the industry standard Common Information Model (CIM).

Xtensible Solutions, a Colorado based company, has served the utilities sector in North America for many years, applying its subject matter expertise to support development of the “intelligent utility” by helping utilities with an incremental approach towards the adoption of standards and improved enterprise integration and data management.

Central to this service is the MD3i (Model Driven Information, Integration and Intelligence) Framework, which enables utilities to embrace industry standards such as CIM, while allowing them to leverage metadata and models from their existing applications and create their own information model. MD3i provides a UML based information modeling methodology that allows enterprises to incorporate information standards, while creating a semantically precise information model to serve as the basis for system integration and business intelligence initiatives. Xtensible has automated many of the MD3i modeling tasks by developing add-ins for Enterprise Architect.

Terry Saxton, Vice President of Xtensible Solutions, commented “This partnership with Sparx Systems will enable us to offer utilities and energy companies the tools and methodologies they need to develop semantically-consistent services for both transactional and analytical needs of an enterprise. We believe that working together we can help our customers solve their interoperability challenges with proven scalable solutions based on open standards, offering a real alternative to reliance on specific system application environments.”

With the advent of Smart Grid and the goal of optimized power distribution, MD3i will provide the solid foundation necessary for the utility enterprise to move forward, by engendering common understanding, transparent flow and usage of information across an enterprise.

Ken Harkin, Business Development Manager for Sparx Systems, noted that “by working with Xtensible Solutions we will be able to meet the growing demand for world class modeling tools and services that are capable of taking power companies closer to the realization of intelligent utilities and smart grids. We look forward to working together in an industry that is on the cusp of an era of fundamental change that will see the grid backbone undergoing a major modernization.”

About Sparx Systems

Sparx Systems specializes in high performance and scalable visual modeling tools for the planning, design and construction of software intensive systems.

With customers in industries ranging from aerospace and automotive engineering to finance, defense, government, entertainment and telecommunications, Sparx Systems is a leading vendor of innovative solutions based on the Unified Modeling Language (UML) and its related specifications. A Contributing Member of the Object Management Group (OMG), Sparx Systems is committed to realizing the potential of model-driven development based on open standards.

The company’s flagship product, Enterprise Architect, has received numerous accolades since its commercial release in August, 2000. Now at version 7.5, Enterprise Architect is the design tool of choice for close to 200,000 registered users world-wide.

About Xtensible Solutions

Xtensible Solutions is a leading provider of semantic-based integration and information management solutions to the utility industry worldwide.

Xtensible is a driving force behind the development and implementation of open standards, such as the IEC CIM and related information exchange standards, that have been identified as key to current and future interoperability initiatives including the Smart Grid. With its MD3i Framework and professional service offerings already in use at numerous utilities and energy companies world-wide, Xtensible is committed to becoming a strategic partner with utilities in their transformation into the intelligent utility of the future.