In 2020, off the back of COVID-19, trade slowed significantly for Christie Lites as the sector faced mass lockdowns and closures. Instead of standing still, the company decided to use this time out to advance its software and streamline operations, giving it a competitive edge for the future. Christie Lites had a vision for an ecosystem of applications that would allow it to automate a lot of its operations, thus optimizing costs and bringing ultra-efficiency to its processes.
The client needed help with building a roadmap for its software products, so it started searching for an external vendor that could help it scale up its endeavors. Christie Lites wanted a partner that specialized in software product development and had a proven track record of success, knowledge and work ethic. As a US-based software development partner with offshore capabilities, ELEKS was the strongest choice. We also had a wealth of experience in shaping business decisions around software product development and guiding customers through the entire product lifecycle – from concept to market delivery.
We kicked off cooperation with a product design phase, where our team of product designers, business analysts, tech experts and project managers scrutinized the client’s product strategy. We approached the client’s business roadmap in a structured way and demonstrated our ability to manage that roadmap through software development.
Within four months, ELEKS ran design phases for two more products, scaled the team and launched the products into implementation. The ELEKS experts analyzed the underlying business workflows and interviewed a range of end-user groups to determine the optimal set of features for each product, then architect them for cost-effectiveness, flexibility and scalability.
The resulting software products include:
- A mobile warehouse application - to manage warehouse space, control inbound and outbound equipment movement and truckload management. During the design phase, ELEKS’ experts tested various barcode scanner attachments and offered a refined solution.
- A new web interface for an ERP application - to track Christie Lites’ logistics, orders and equipment movements.
- A mobile app for freelance technicians - to streamline communication between a widespread, extended team in a unique way. Technicians can view job requests, accept jobs on their mobile devices, talk directly with the coordinator and other technicians, on site in real time, view and manage the equipment inventory and more.
Every application was integrated with the common back end to offer a totally seamless, company-wide user experience.
There's a real depth of best practices and industry knowledge that’s obvious when you work together on projects. In the end, we got products that were fully and thoughtfully developed, intelligently designed and met needs we even didn't even realize we had.
We effectively executed the client’s roadmap and took stewardship of the projects, allowing Christie Lites to focus on its core business and trust development outcomes to a highly skilled partner.
By adopting mobile and web solutions and tying them to its common back end, Christie Lites optimized its operating costs and boosted its process efficiencies.
With a new mobile app for freelance technicians, the client has seen a huge leap in its efficiency and has been able to provide increased value for freelance technicians, allowing it to secure top-tier talent easier. The company has also started exploring the software market as a new revenue stream, by sharing this app as SaaS product with other players in the equipment rental industry.
