Software Services

Octavia specialises in delivering cost effective bespoke business software across a broad range of industry sectors. Our portfolio of work includes enterprise level workflow systems, aircraft maintenance systems and shrink-wrapped learning software.

Our Team

Octavia have a Bespoke Software Development team comprising of analysts, project managers and developers. Our team are chosen not only for their technical expertise, but also their history in solving business problems.

We believe our team should have a breadth of skills as well as their own specialist areas. We encourage our team to gain vendor certification where appropriate.

The Tools

Our team has a wealth of experience with a broad range of databases, development tools/technologies and platforms. Our main areas of expertise are with Microsoft platforms and tools. Please see our Technical Skills section for further details.

Methodologies

We can use a variety of methodologies (including RAD and SSADM) but our preferred methodology is Rational Unified Process (RUP) combined with Scrum.

Rational Unified Process (RUP)

RUP is a fully fledged software project management methodology and is deemed as one of the best and most agile within the industry. RUP is configurable for the size and complexity of the project and complements the other methodologies described here.

RUP provides us with a solid framework for ensuring:

• On-time/budget delivery
• Delivery to expected quality standards
• Efficient communication both internally and with customers/partners

Scrum

Scrum is an agile, lightweight process that can be used to manage and control product and software development using iterative, incremental practices. Wrapping existing engineering practices, Scrum generates the benefits of agile bespoke software development with the advantages of a simple implementation. Scrum significantly increases productivity and reduces time to benefits while facilitating adaptive, empirical systems development.

How Scrum & RUP Combine

Scrum provides a wrapper for RUP by bringing leadership and guidance to the development team and in helping them stay focused on their objectives.

Unified Modelling Language (UML)

Unified Modelling Language is the industry-standard language for the specification, visualization, construction, and documentation of the components of software systems. UML helps to simplify the process of software design, making a model for construction with a number of different views. One of the great merits of UML is the way it helps open up the development process with what are called use cases. These serve to identify principal roles (actors) in the system, boundaries, actions, and so on.

Bespoke Software Development Lifecycle (Construction Phase)

We utilise an approach called Feature Driven Development (FDD) which splits the product into a series of features (or groups of features) which can then be prioritised, then an iterative software development cycle is used to construct each feature as shown below:

The benefit of taking this approach is that we can release working functionality to the stakeholder and get feedback sooner, which can then be incorporated into the next release.

Development and Testing Environment

At Octavia we employ a sophisticated architecture that consists of separate environments for software development, integration and testing. We utilise the latest Integrated Development Environment’s (IDE’s), project management/tracking and testing tools. We also (where possible) automate a lot of traditionally manual processes such as testing, which removes human error and also speeds up the process.

We utilise the latest “Virtual Machine” technology to allow us to test software across a vast range of operating systems, platforms and configurations.

Training

Where necessary Octavia will implement a Training Needs Analysis (TNA) and design suitable courses for your users as an integral part of any software solution that is deployed.

Post Delivery

Warranty

All solutions receive a 60 day warranty period which covers the fixing of any application errors that have not been discovered during the development/testing phases of the project.

Ongoing Support

Octavia offer a choice of post implmentation support options. Please see our Terms and Conditions for Consultancy.

Implementation

This is usually the main project phase involving design, build, testing, rollout and migration.

This (and all sucessive phases) are charged under our Terms and Conditions for the Design and Development of Software (for small projects this can also be performed under our Terms and Conditions for Consultancy.

Acceptance

We usually achieve formal acceptance of the software through joint Acceptance Testing with the customer.