SAP NetWeaver Process Integration (PI) — formerly Exchange Infrastructure (XI) — offers a high level of flexibility in connecting your SAP and non-SAP systems using one of the dozens of adapters offered by SAP and SAP partners. But adapters are not your only option — this article explores a powerful (often less expensive) alternative called the Conversion Agent, a tool that dynamically converts unstructured data from Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, plain text, etc., and semi-structured formats such as HL7, SWIFT, HIPA, ANSI X12, and COBOL to PI-compatible SOAP XML. This article takes you on a tour of the tool's capabilities and shows you how easy it is to use by walking you through a step-by-step example.
Prasad Illapani
Prasad Illapani is a solution architect/PL RIG specialist with the BST SAP NetWeaver Solution Management RIG team at SAP Labs LLC, in Redmond, Washington, where he focuses on both the development and systems areas of SOA middleware technologies. He has been with SAP Labs for nearly eight years. During this time, he has also been part of the SAP Supplier Relationship Management (SAP SRM) team, working as a Regional Implementation Group (RIG) Specialist in various Ramp-Up SAP SRM integration projects. Prasad holds a master’s degree in computer science and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He is a regular speaker at SAP TechEd, SAP SDN, and Wellesley Information Services’ SAP Insider conferences.
You may contact the author at prasad.illapani@sap.com.
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