Extract, Transform and Load Tools

ETL Tools assist with the timely extract of and inserting clean and checked data into the data warehouse

Once the data warehouse is up and running, it needs to be updated with operational data on a regular basis. The frequency depends on the application and the need for ‘freshness’ of the required information. In most cases, daily or weekly uploads suffice.

What do ETL Tools do?

They automate the regular Extract from a variety of data sources, such as ERP systems, bespoke operational databases, Excel spreadsheets, binary files, etc.

They Transform the data into a common format. For example, they may format dates in a uniform way, or convert different currencies into a base currency depending on the exchange rate of the day.

After checking for consistency and accuracy, they then Load the clean and consistent data into the data warehouse. Rejected data gets parked for human inspection and can subsequently be manually corrected and loaded.

Although there are a number of ETL tools on the market, Objectivity has developed an in-house version. This product, including its source, is freely available as a shareware product for Objectivity customers.