1. A computer system for facilitating graphical construction of a data model, wherein the data model analyzes data from a process plant to produce an output, the computer system comprising: a non-transitory computer readable memory that stores a plurality of data model templates including one or more data source templates defining data sources within the process plant, one or more functional templates defining data processing routines to be performed on data retrieved from the data sources and one or more data output templates indicating processing to be performed on outputs of the data processing routine; a configuration engine that operates on a computer processing device, including; an interface routine that generates, via a user interface device: a library region that displays graphical depictions of the plurality of data model templates including the data source templates, the functional templates and the data output templates; and a canvas region that receives and displays user selections of the graphical depictions of one or more data model templates and one or more interconnections defining the connections between the selected and displayed data model templates; wherein the configuration engine further operates to execute a software routine to enable a user to modify the data model templates depicted in the canvas region by defining specific parameters to be used in the data model templates and the interconnections between data model templates, to create interconnected model blocks forming a data model, wherein the data model includes a model input block defining a specific data source of data to be retrieved for the data model, one or more model functional blocks defining data processing procedures to be performed on the data from the specific data source and a model output block defining an operation associated with the output of the one or more functional blocks; and a runtime engine that operates on a computer processing device to execute the data model.