Prerequisites:
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See the introduction: Understand Organizational Hierarchys
Use Case: Multi-utility company
An utility company provides both Electricity and Water services to two neighboring towns: Northville and Southville.
Here is exactly how they organize their system using Structures, OCs, and Areas.
Structures (The "What")
The company separates its daily operations into two strict business units.
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Structure A: Electricity Operations
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Structure B: Water Operations
Operations Centers (The "Where")
For each Structure, they create Operations Centers (OCs) to dispatch workers to specific towns.
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OC 1 (Electricity Northville): Handles power issues in Northville.
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OC 2 (Electricity Southville): Handles power issues in Southville.
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OC 3 (Water Northville): Handles water issues in Northville.
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OC 4 (Water Southville): Handles water issues in Southville.
Note on the Rules: Northville is managed by two different OCs (OC 1 and OC 3). This is allowed because those OCs belong to completely different Structures (Electricity vs. Water).
Area (The "Special Grouping")
The Situation: A major river runs between the two towns. Every spring, the river floods. The flooding causes power outages in Northville, and pipe bursts in both Northville and Southville. (Southville's power grid is on higher ground and is never affected).
The Solution: Instead of breaking their standard daily rules, the company creates a flexible Area called the Spring Flood Zone.
They assign the following OCs to this new Area:
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OC 1 (Electricity Northville)
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OC 3 (Water Northville)
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OC 4 (Water Southville)
Now, during a flood, the emergency dispatcher can select the Spring Flood Zone Area to instantly view and manage all affected electricity and water crews across both towns, completely bypassing the rigid daily Structures.