Blog | Agnostic, Agnostic, Hyperautomation, RPA

How UiPath libraries can improve automation workflow

Dec 8, 2022 | 3 min read

Author

Michael Gladstein

In automation, there’s no need to rewrite the same RPA workflow for every process. Instead, use UiPath libraries to avoid duplication of effort. As a UiPath MVP and automation expert, Michael Gladstein explores the long-term benefits of utilizing UiPath libraries for automation teams.

No one likes reinventing the wheel. That’s why, no matter what your role in the automation process, it’s important to recognize the benefits of reusable code.

If you can use code more than once in a project – and then, over time, build a collection of what you reuse – then you can start developing a powerful repository to fall back on in use cases you see time and time again.

Of course, reusable code isn’t new to robotic process automation (RPA); it’s often seen in traditional programming too – whether it’s as simple as a login sequence or much more complex than that.

But it makes sense that automation teams would want to make the most of it. After all, automation is about streamlining processes – so what better way place to start than your own workflows?

UiPath libraries: a source of reusable components

In RPA, of course, we tend to talk about “reusable components” rather than snippets of code. They can be used in multiple processes, multiple times within a single process, and across various use cases and industries.

A UiPath library is a collection of these reusable components. With such a library, it’s easier to support workflow changes over several projects – because a library can be imported into a project, just as standard UiPath dependencies are imported by default.

Instead of updating the same code in three different projects, for example, you can place the code in a library, publish a new version of the library; and add the library as a dependency of your projects.

Libraries are similar to APIs but in different form, where the underlying code is created from previous UiPath projects or individual code files.

Libraries are also living entities that can be updated over time. You could add new components, new features added to existing reusable components, or new UiPath features.

At Roboyo, we recommend that you check existing processes to see if any components are shared throughout multiple projects, or if there is a capability to build out such a component that could be shared.

As new processes are being discovered and documented, teams should also evaluate if any reusable components can be built to support the new processes.

Benefits for automation teams

UiPath libraries offer long-term benefits, whether you want to avoid rewriting RPA workflows or to better manage application updates or upgrades.

If you’re an automation engineer, they help you maintain projects that reuse the same components. They provide an easy method to implement new updates, features, and fixes, propagating them more easily to new or existing projects.

They also help you save time by making the most of specialist expertise. For example, an engineer with expertise in a specific area can create complex, niche functionality as a reusable component. This means you don’t waste time working on tasks that are outside your range of expertise.

If you’re in a delivery team, meanwhile, UiPath libraries can help reduce time to production – because it’s likely that some actions or steps within a process already exist within an existing library. So only new actions would need to be created.

Finally, the greatest benefit of UiPath libraries is that they’re part of an ecosystem. On the UiPath Marketplace, there’s a community built around creating and sharing reusable UiPath components. Companies such as Salesforce, Microsoft, and Google have produced libraries they publicly share with the UiPath community, to further enable automation delivery.

This means that not all capabilities must be built in-house. The UiPath Marketplace may provide you with a solution to a component your delivery team is struggling with or provide yet another way to decrease time to production.

As your center of excellence (CoE) matures, and your collection of libraries expands, UiPath libraries allow you to develop a more “plug-and-play” approach to process delivery. And it could make things simpler as you start to move toward hyperautomation – with automated processes co-existing in an increasingly advanced ecosystem.

HOW ROBOYO CAN HELP

At Roboyo, we can help your CoE to make the most of automation – including using UiPath libraries to reuse project components.