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ETL

The task of ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) is to acquire, transform and record data. ETL is the main “caretaker” of data in the warehouse, as it ensures the following:

  • Transfer of data from source systems throughout your company into the data warehouse
  • Transfer of data between individual layers of your data warehouse
  • Transfer of data to layers above the data warehouse for the purposes of reporting
     

Why is ETL so important?

For quality outputs from the data warehouse, the fundamental factors are the type of data, when they reached the warehouse and how they are handled in the warehouse.

  • Whether the data in the warehouse are available on time depends on ETL. If the data are not available on time, all outputs from the warehouses will be delayed – this could involve key reports for your company’s management.
  • Whether the data in the warehouse are in the correct format depends on ETL. If the form of data in the warehouse is heterogeneous, it is not possible to effectively work with such data or aggregate and analyze them – and you can thus lose, for example, an analysis that is key for deciding which segment of the market to abandon and which segment to invest in. 
  • ETL design has an impact on the long-term sustainability of the data warehouse.
  • ETL design has an impact on the speed of implementation of changes and new requests in the data warehouse.

Measure twice, cut once

 When data warehouses were first being built, ETL was unfortunately often underappreciated, which today is apparent in the high demand from our customers for ETL optimisation and redesign. Labour intensity associated with ETL typically represents more than half of a data-warehouse project’s overall labour intensity. Therefore, it pays to dedicate sufficient time and resources to ETL design, as its subsequent repair is labour intensive and expensive.

How to get started with Profinit?

Profinit is able to perform an analysis of the existing ETL in your data warehouse and create a custom solution according to your specific situation. We have helped our customers in these areas:

  • ETL architecture and design
  • ETL development
  • Optimisation of ETL performance
  • Analysis of critical paths and optimisation of the interdependence of ETL processes