Why does the Energy & Utilities sector Need Software Quality Assurance?

According to MarketsAndMarkets, ‘The energy and utility analytics market is estimated to grow from USD 1.81 Billion in 2016 to USD 3.41 Billion by 2021, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13.5%.’ The Energy and Utilities sector has been going through its own set of challenges over the years. In fact, the last one decade has been all about exploring fossil fuels and researching for alternative energy sources such as wind, solar, and biofuels. Additionally, the government and the private sector has been working towards delivering value added services to the consumers and bringing down the operational costs at the same time.

Technology has been an enabler all through the evolution phase, where digital technologies have brought its own set of strengths to the sector. However, the challenge has been to build robust software and quality to ensure performance and security for the companies operating in the Energy and Utilities sector.

The report further states, ‘Dynamic forecasting and load management, operational efficiency and risk mitigation, increasing government initiatives for Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), and predictive analytics for businesses are the driving forces that are driving the growth of energy and utility analytics market. The enormous benefits of infusing analytics in the energy and utility industry operations and infrastructure have attracted enterprises operating in this vertical to deploy energy and utility analytics software and services in their operations. Asset optimization analytics is expected to have the largest market share during the period of 2016–2021. This software is utilized to predict the future existence of assets. It helps in identifying the asset lifecycle pattern and determining the factors behind their failure using real-time and historical data.’

The opportunities presented by digital technologies are definitely bringing in potential breaks, but posing challenges too. Today, we can observe a major shift in the way the energy sector is conducting business. There is substantial focus on the consumers and their convenience, and keen attention towards making the experience more powerful and intimate. Digital Technologies have been enabling these businesses to deal with challenges such as increasing operational costs, resource inadequacy, regulatory compliance, and reaching out to new geographies. Energy companies are finding new and innovative ways to deal with these gaps, and modernizing their business for delivering enhanced services.

How can IT and Software Quality Assurance support the Energy sector?

IT has been an enabler for the energy and utilities sector, but how effective it can be if the software of the application is not taken care of? Companies operating in the sector very well understand that IT is integral for their business excellence. Technical know-how will not only help them to meet the cropping requirements, but also enable them to grow beyond the competitive edge.

Hence, it is important to look out for end-to-end IT services that begin right from ideation and culminate into delivery. There is tremendous scope for enterprise-wise transformation if the software or application development process is well evaluated and effectively tested for quality. Where is the scope for software quality assurance with reference to the software development and application development for the Energy sector? We look at the key areas where software quality assurance contributes substantially.

A lot of attention is needed in the Product Engineering space, where energy companies need attention to stabilize and improve their product lifecycle. Software quality needs to get evaluated at every stage to ensure that cutting-edge technology solutions get implemented and deliver as expected. Right from developing and implementing new software products, enterprise platforms; quality assurance contributes substantially to the overall engineering process.

Software Quality Assurance and Testing enables teams to create the product architecture, design, and effectively initiate the development activity. It helps organizations to develop performance-driven applications and software products. Moreover, it equips them to deal with recurring business challenges, as the architecture development and designing activity is effectively validated with frequent testing and QA processes. Additionally, it also helps to ensure regulatory compliance.

In the current digital scenario, website and mobile applications have become a common ground of opportunity for enterprises. Enterprises need to offer online experience to create favourable brand perception. Digital solutions have become imperative for almost any kind of business, including the energy and utilities segment. It helps to keep the customers engaged across diverse digital media platforms. This needs digital assurance and testing, which helps teams to validate aspects such as performance, functionality, and quality throughout the product or application lifecycle.

Big Data and Analytics has been enabling and empowering various business sectors to strengthen their market position. However, any such implementation needs expertise and effective migration and resourcing of data. This can be made possible by validating the power of the analytics platforms and aligning it as per the needs of the organization.

The importance of Quality and the inherent business value has made Software Testing an essential component of the E&U project delivery. Ranging from early integration to ensuring mission critical operations during the transformation of core business applications along with infrastructure updates, testing has become vital for CIO’s to ensure their transformation journey is smooth and flawless.

Cigniti understands the testing needs of the E&U landscape which is undergoing massive transformation from existing systems to better ways of consumption, production and distribution. Having delivered comprehensive testing services to E&U organizations in US, UK and Europe, Cigniti brings greater test coverage, test acceleration and tool agnostic test frameworks. With capabilities that enrich QA initiatives across change management, compliance programs and executive monitoring, Cigniti’s services strengthen the global E&U ecosystems with precision and high standards of QA.