Automating electronic document management design: a model-driven approach using business process

Abstract

Model-driven architecture (MDA) is a useful approach for designing enterprise information systems through structured models. This study applies MDA to electronic document management (EDM) systems, which are essential for improving document workflows and ensuring regulatory compliance. Organizations often face difficulties when converting business process models into software-ready designs. Current transformation methods are complex, involving multiple intermediate steps that increase effort and risk of errors. The objective of this work is to create a direct transformation from business process model and notation (BPMN) diagrams to unified modeling language (UML) class diagrams. This aims to improve automation, reduce modeling effort, and maintain consistency. The proposed methodology uses MDA principles and query/view/transformation (QVT) to automatically map BPMN elements to UML classes based on predefined rules. The approach is implemented within the eclipse modeling framework (EMF) and validated through a case study on EDM systems. The transformation successfully generates UML class diagrams that accurately represent BPMN-based business processes. The results demonstrate: increased automation, reducing manual effort in software modeling, improved model consistency, eliminating errors associated with multi-step transformations and enhanced business-IT alignment, providing a structured approach for business professionals and developers.