ADe Technologies, Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of health and safety for Pattison Sand Company. We have a training facility and different locations in Florida.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with ADe Technologies, Inc.?

We started with website design and development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially gave ADe Technologies, Inc. the scope of work and overview, and they came back with their feedback. Then, we began working in design and development. From then on, we’ve had regular meetings to discuss other opportunities to expand on what we’ve already built, adapting to changes in technology and our business needs.

It’s an iOS application that’s equivalent to an online university. We’ve developed it to train our employees; each can have an account. We can drop different training modules, allowing them to grab their training online, sometimes in conjunction with hands-on learning. For example, there are compliance requirements if we have a construction project. We don’t have to take 1–2 employees and have somebody train them; we can just put them on the online system to meet the compliance needs instead of wasting our resources.

Additionally, we use their graphic designers and get their help on SMM and SEO occasionally.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with over two dozen people. Some are programmers or graphic designers; it depends on what we’re doing at the time.

How did you come to work with ADe Technologies, Inc.

I knew a couple of them from a previous company in India that went out of business. We had some products that we needed to continue, but the other company couldn’t do them anymore. Therefore, we picked up our relationship and grew from there.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $50,000–$80,000 throughout the years.

What is the status of this engagement?

I’ve worked with the people that own the place for at least 20 years. We started this project in January 2014, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We obviously ensure that the system is robust and the online performance is sufficient. We’ve had 30,000 simultaneous users without a problem on one of the products. Also, we don’t experience downtime. We’re around 97%–98% free of technical issues because we have redundant servers. If something goes wrong, it automatically routes it to a different server so our customers are never left without service.

How did ADe Technologies, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re an extension of our in-house team; our collaboration is constant. One of the advantages is that we can give feedback and direction on our shift and do everything we need to update and review. They do their work when we go to sleep, and it’s already done when we wake up. Moreover, we save a lot of time because somebody responds 24 hours a day, which is great. We give them the updates in the afternoon or evening, and they’re already moving forward in the morning.

Since we’ve worked together for so long, we use WhatsApp, emails, and video or phone calls to communicate. Many times, we just need a quick chat to keep the machine moving. The main thing is that we always have access; we’re never left without communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re invested — our projects become their projects, and they’re an essential part of our collaboration process. ADe Technologies always gives us the effort we need. If they have to keep their people around a couple of hours or jump in the middle of the night to fix a problem, they respond to our needs and share our urgency. We don’t get that all the time, and the immediate attention can’t be overstated.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Although we’re always looking to improve, nothing comes to mind immediately.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take the time to explain what you need, give them the details, and have the confidence to let them take the next step. Look at it as a joint venture and be very collaborative. We have to dedicate time to them to succeed, just as we need them to save time for us.