Life Cycle Management

Companies rely on effective Life Cycle Management (LCM) in the area of software development to manage the entire life cycle of a software application. This involves a series of steps aimed at maximising the quality, reliability and usability of the software while minimising risks and costs.

In the first step of efficient life cycle management, we identify and document the individual functional and non-functional requirements and expectations of our customers and then define their needs. This includes specific functionalities, performance specifications and the expected service life.

On this basis, we plan the architecture and design of the software, defining technologies, platforms, data structures and algorithms. This process ensures that the future phases and subsequent utilisation of our customers can be effectively designed. It also includes the necessary flexibility and adaptability to accommodate future developments in the market.
If the installation requires new hardware components, we can also incorporate these into the processes.

Based on the specific requirements, the process moves on to the development phase, where the implementation, coding and integration of various components takes place. Particular attention is paid to the efficiency, maintainability and scalability of the code.

The software is then subjected to extensive testing. In addition to checking whether all requirements are met, various other points are also tested. The programme codes are checked for errors, the cooperation between different parts of the programme and other programmes is tested, the functioning of the entire system is checked and the software is viewed by our customers. If discrepancies are found, these are rectified and the test process is repeated.

The software is then installed, configured and, if necessary, integrated into the existing software infrastructure. With the implementation in the production environment, the application is made available to the users and this provision is inventoried by our customers. In product lifecycle management (PLM), commissioning marks the transition from the procurement phase to the utilisation phase.

This step requires close co-operation between IT and the departments concerned to ensure a smooth implementation. This may also include updating the other infrastructure. The final stage of commissioning is the familiarisation and training of users and administrators, which can vary in intensity depending on the new product. Existing data is also migrated to the new software.

The uninterrupted operation of the software used is crucial for commercial success. This requires regular maintenance in order to rectify errors, provide security updates against threats from the internet and optimise performance. As part of Application Lifecycle Management (ALM), we offer our customers not only comprehensive user support, but also monitoring of the software and the entire system in order to recognise possible system overloads or impending failures at an early stage and initiate appropriate countermeasures.

Continuous further development with regular updates and upgrades ensures that we respond to changing requirements at an early stage and implement feedback from our customers in order to constantly improve the software and keep it competitive.

In addition to monitoring software, we also offer our customers comprehensive services in the areas of support, maintenance and servicing of existing hardware and software infrastructures. This includes 1st, 2nd and 3rd level support to answer all user enquiries quickly and competently and to ensure operation at all levels of the company at all times. Our managed service also includes an on-call service with guaranteed response times, which ensures that we are available immediately if required and can respond to faults. This rapid response capability minimises downtime and helps to ensure the smooth operation of our customers' systems.

We also offer comprehensive configuration management, which we attach great importance to. This ensures that the software environment is always optimally configured and meets current requirements. This includes the management of configuration changes to ensure stability, security and performance. With our incident, problem and change management, we take a systematic approach to identifying the causes of problems and implementing long-term solutions. We realise software changes incrementally using the agile approach (Scrum) in two to three-week sprints, thereby ensuring that they are carried out in a controlled and orderly manner without affecting operations.

If the software is no longer required or is replaced by a new version, it is decommissioned. This can include the safe dismantling of systems and the migration of data. We support our customers in this process by guiding them through the decommissioning process. Users are informed and, if necessary, advised of alternative solutions.

It is often not necessary to re-plan and introduce new software, or at least not immediately. We therefore offer our customers our services for every step of life cycle management (LCM). This can be the implementation of systems that have already been procured by our customers or the comprehensive safeguarding of operations as part of support and incident management, for example. In doing so, we ensure that ongoing operations are not interrupted. If a need for new software arises at a later date, we can start by analysing requirements and planning the successor solution.