Case Study – The UK Fire Safety Scheme
Background
Having worked internationally for over 10 years in a fire engineering and in a fire risk assessing capacity, I recognized the importance of informing the public about just how fire safe a building is. Upon my return to the UK back in 2014, I started work on what would become The Fire Safety Scheme ®, which aspires to be the UK’s standard for fire risk assessment undertaking, addressing the challenge of knowing just how fire safe a building is prior to using its facilities.
Historically, assessors have used different tools and methodologies, and when assessors have been benchmarked, they were found to possess a vast range of experiences, knowledge and skills. This often led to inconsistent findings that are not commensurate with the degree of fire risk. It was therefore important for me to develop an intelligent application tool to assist the fire risk assessor with their assessment undertaking and for that application to be intelligently linked to consumer needs for audited suppliers of fire safety products and/or service providers.
Initial Approach
Initially, I produced a scope of works, an Excel version of the tool to aid understanding, and then contacted a software development business based in Manchester. Their advice was to approach the project using a web-based design, such as Framework 7. This approach is typical because it is cost-effective and, for the most part, application users wouldn’t know the difference between a web or application-based platform. A 16-week project commenced; however, my lessons in business have seldom been learned without a cost of some kind, as in this case, time commitment cost, financial, and many lost customer opportunities. I experienced all these and more, even to the point where I produced a bibliography of excuses for their procrastination. The project sadly ran into two and a half years, while alarm bells were ringing after the initial 16-week program, and much to my annoyance, I allowed this work to continue after 16 weeks. This led to another hard lesson in business. The contractor in question eventually closed down, and staff were let go for other opportunities. This left my project incomplete, out of pocket, with a product unfit for customer consumption, therefore a very disappointing experience indeed.
Revised Approach
Most businesses would have given in at this juncture; however, as a subject matter expert believing in fire safety and wanting to make a real difference, I searched for a credible business development partner. Artimus (Artificial Intelligence Multiuse Solutions) are a software specialist based in the heart of Wales. The primary benefits of using their services were; having had an initial consultation, I gained confidence in their abilities, they understood the application creation process necessary for my ideas, and their team integrated into my business seamlessly to fully appreciate the application and my customer user experience to be created. Following our consultation, we mapped out the scope of work taking cognizance of the work previously produced to avoid previous pitfalls. We agreed on a program of works with various gateways aimed to check progress against scope continuously. The focus during our collaboration resulted in a high-quality product, with a platform that can be built upon for future improvements. I am pleased to say that Artimus is our software partner of choice for all of our development needs. Artimus are subject matter experts who are approachable, easy to do business with, and deliver on time and within my budget. It has been a pleasure to use their services.