A year ago during the peak of COVID-19 and while in lockdown, Queensland Sugar Limited‘s Manager of Information and Communication Technology, Salvo Spina, approached Dark Ice to help with their existing mobile app – QSL App.
While the app was already reasonably mature and functional, it had fallen behind with some of the current trends and technologies and required some upgrading, not least of all to ensure it was compliant with the new Apple and Google Play store requirements. There were also requirements for new functionality based on a backlog of business requests.
Dark Ice was happy to step in and give the app some TLC and then start building out new features for QSL’s customers – the hardworking sugar cane growers throughout Queensland.
Initially there were some challenges bringing things up to date, but after working with the passionate team at QSL we got things to a point where the app was modernised and updated across the app stores.
It wasn’t long however that we came across another technological hurdle where a complementary technology to the app was being forcibly retired and urgently needed migrating to another platform. Once again, we were able to assist and ensure that the code and technology was brought up to modern standards and we were able to successfully deploy new versions of the app without any disruption to QSL’s customers.
While we needed to address various technical challenges, the fun part was in building out numerous new features into the app to make their customers day to day work lives easier and more productive. This was particularly rewarding given the harsh conditions Queensland produces for growers, not to mention dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the course of the engagement we delivered several brand new areas of functionality for QSL that were met with high praise.
Given our own passion for technology and seeing problems that can be solved or processes that can be streamlined and optimised, we got in and rebuilt all of the automated CI/CD pipelines and introduced new mechanisms of delivery to ensure the app was being tested more comprehensively and issues were found earlier. Drawing on our extensive knowledge of building out automated pipelines it didn’t take us long to have brand new implementations and builds rolling out the door to the wider QSL team regularly.
With the app maintaining ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️’s on the app stores and all of the new tech kitted out in the app we hope this product continues to grow with the growers and serve as a useful tool for all of the users.
Thank you QSL for giving us the opportunity to help solve your problems and build out new features into a sweet app.
If you have a requirement for specialised expertise like QSL and Salvo then please get touch with us here, or alternatively use our Project Cost Analyser and we’ll be more than happy to help you get the result you’re looking for.
