Product Configurator Framework

How Product Configurator Framework in Pega Rules Insurance Domain?
Insurance client to meet the increasing the market challenges and fast growing business need embarked on a business IT initiative to automate the business process for quick turn around and higher process efficiency. Client also faced challenges in maintaining and updating the underwriting and rating rules embedded in their legacy system. Following are the challenges face by the customer in the existing business / IT environment.

Business Challenges:
1.Manual capture of policy related information.

2.Rating is done manually by using the spreadsheets, where the business logic and premium generation logic are embedded.

3.Tightly couple legacy system with business rules, underwriting rules and rating rule embedded in legacy system makes incorporation of dynamic business needs a time consuming process.

4.Tracking and follow up on pending quote awaiting underwriters action was difficult due to non availability of aging reports on policy quotes and issuance.

Pega Solution:

Pega solution is aimed at bridging the gap between business goals and information systems. Pega process-based integration technology helps organizations model and automate business process workflows and integrate them with applications, systems and partners.· Implementation of product configuration framework through which new product configuration and modification in product feature can be done and made available in quick time. This frame work provides purpose-based rule forms for configuring product groups, products and product components that help you organize and manage the rules associated with products.· New Business Quote / All underwriting rules per line of business – data capture for underwriting / policy quote.· Online Policy Issuance / Endorsement, Claims tracking and Billing history.· Reports – To generate various policy tracking reports, business performance metrics reports.

The Product Configuration Solution Framework offers best-practice rule forms and administrative tools for maintaining product configurations in the context of business rule and business process management applications. Product Configuration provides purpose-based rule forms for configuring product groups, products and product components that help you organize and manage the rules associated with products.

Technical Brief:

Product Configuration also provides you with activities, flows and flow-actions that help you access product rules managed with the Product Configuration framework from within your application. The Product Configuration Framework provides you with rule forms for defining products as a collection of components, sub-components and features and organized into product groups. To access these rules from a process management application, you will still need to create a work object corresponding to the action you are performing with this product and the work- and data- classes associated with this work object.

From within the flow for that work object you can access the product configuration rules by calling one of the flows or flow actions defined in the Product Configuration framework. Likewise, components and sub-components typically reference display sections which reference properties and validation rules that will need to be defined independently within your application.

Key objects associated with a Product Offering structure include:

• Product Group (package of products)
• Product
• Components (making up the product)
• Features (making up the components)

The Product Configuration Framework RuleSets include:
• PegaSP — the rules for creating a new product by configuring components,features, pricing, eligibility, validation, and display of the objects
The Process Commander RuleSets include:
• Pega-ProCom — workflow support and portal facilities
• Pega-IntSvcs — system interface support, including connectors and services
• Pega-WB — internal logic and facilities
• Pega-RULES — activities, Java generation, rule resolution, and other basicrules engine operations

Technical Detail- Classes, Rules, Activities, Flows

Data classes define the data structures for supporting information that the Framework uses to process work. The data classes used in this Framework are listed below.
• PegaSP-Data-PricingFactor
• PegaSP-Data-Product-Data classes define the data structures for supporting information that the Framework uses to process work. The data classes used in this Framework are listed below.
• PegaSP-Data-PricingFactor
• PegaSP-Data-Product-

Embed- classes define the structure of pages embedded within other pages. The Embed- classes used in this Framework are listed below.
• Embed-PegaSP-ComponentFeatures
• Embed-PegaSP-GroupProducts
• Embed-PegaSP-ProductComponents
• Embed-PegaSP-SPFindRules


Flow rules consist of shapes and connectors, each with associated parameters and values. Flows specify how work objects are initiated and then proceed to resolution.

They specify who works on work objects in what sequence, what conditions apply to the work, which aspects of the work occur automatically or manually, and other governing principles. Flow rules used in the Product Configuration Framework are listed below.

Advantages of using the Product Configurator Framework are
1. Enables you to define products (saleable packages of insurance coverages / benefits and services) in terms of standard and optional packages, components, subcomponents, and features.Ex: Product: Commercial AutoComponents: Driver Information, Vehicle Information, Policy Level Information
2.To rapidly develop, maintain, and uniquely deploy product (or service) specifications in a controlled and consistent manner.
3. Designing time is less as the framework itself provides the step by step procedure to fill in the blocks for putting the business logic.
4. Enhancing business revenue by dynamically configuring the components and features and pricing the products actually purchased at or near the point of sale.
5. Improved turn around time in policy issuance process resulting in higher customer satisfaction.
6. Decision making and easy tracking of new policies / endorsement.7 Quick and easy access to agent on policies billing / claim information.