[...] * In systems analysis, it is common to deal with the complexity of an entire system by considering it to consist of interrelated sub-systems. This leads naturally to consider models as consisting of sub-models. Such a (conceptual) model can be implemented as a computer model that consists of a number of connected component models (or modules). Component-oriented designs actually represent a natural choice for building scalable, robust, large-scale applications, and to maximize the ease of maintenance in a variety of domains.