The architecture of a regional structure is skillfully organized according to specific postal, organizational, and political criteria. As a core component of the Cross Applications suite, this regional structure is further refined by incorporating utility features, thereby integrating it seamlessly with the Central Address Management component.
The intricate design of the postal regional structure aids in organizing the service territory according to postal criteria. With predefined hierarchical elements like postal code, city, city district, street, and street section, the structure is methodically allocated to both the business partner and the connection object. It is from these points that it is transferred to the installation. The structure effectively operates as a central repository for city and street names, ensuring accurate address layout. It is possible to import the postal regional structure of certain countries, such as Germany, using files provided by national postal services, like Deutsche Post, which also ensure correct assignment of city districts and postal street sections.
To further reduce potential errors and streamline the input process, the city and street information is supplemented with utility-specific default values. Critical data for meter reading and billing, such as meter reading unit and franchise contract, is also autogenerated during the installation process. This applies to thermal gas billing data too, like temperature area and calorific value district, which is defaulted during gas meter installation.
The organizational regional structure helps manage the service territory according to well-defined, internal corporate standards. Multicity regional structure groups are assigned to and create associations between different cities. These groups can also be traced back to any business partner address for agent determination during the bill printout process.
On a larger scale, the regional structure area combines several regional structure groups. It can be linked to any connection object address for plant determination during the service order creation phase. Furthermore, this structure aids in controlling the creation of service or maintenance orders triggered by technical utility processes, under the supervision of the Work Management component. Also, by linking service objects like Periodic Device Replacement or Disconnection to the maintenance planning plant, the regional structure area becomes an essential part of the operations.
The political regional structure organizes the service territory based on administrative protocols. User-defined primes such as "Bundesland" in Germany or "State" in the USA highlight the flexibility of its hierarchies. Similar user-defined elements involving specific regions, like "Bayern" in Germany or "California" in the USA, are also incorporated. Although it provides valuable information, the political regional structure doesn't possess any controlling function.