Financial software development house Silica Fund Administration Systems has become the latest company to implement iREQUIRE, iLAB Project Services` requirements management methodology.
The implementation forms part of a batch of software quality services iLAB Project Services has undertaken at Silica over the past year, including software testing, a quality environment audit and software project management.
Silica offers a unitised fund administration system solution that is rapidly being recognised as the industry standard in SA and is making inroads internationally.
Local clients include Investec Asset Management, StanLib Oasis Asset Management, Metropolitan Unit Trusts and FinSource, which administers BoE, NIB, Coronation, Gryphon and African Harvest. Internationally, Silica, operating out of Dublin, Ireland, is targeting the UK offshore transfer agency market.
Company MD Michael Prentice says that in the near future more than 70% of SA`s unit trust management companies will be administered on Silica software. Quality assurance, he says, is becoming one of the main differentials for setting products apart in a tough market.
"Clients` margins are under pressure and they are demanding better services for their money; this has increased the need for world-class project management and services throughout the software development lifecycle.
"We contracted with iLAB Project Services for iREQUIRE based on the prior high level of services the company has provided and the fact that we have identified a natural cultural fit between our two companies.
"While we did investigate a couple of competitive offerings, iLAB Project Services` ability to pinpoint our needs, tailor a solution accordingly and then fast-track delivery swung the balance overwhelmingly in its favour," Prentice says.
Steven Lauter, GM Solutions at iLAB Project Services, adds: "We have developed an iterative relationship with Silica born out of the initial testing services we provided. Silica is a dynamic environment with a streamlined process of software release within defined development cycles. iREQUIRE is the perfect solution to enhance this process."
iREQUIRE is an interactive, intranet-based requirements management framework targeted at software development companies. It covers the entire span of the software development lifecycle (SDLC), from the business concept through to maintenance, ensuring traceability of requirements.
iREQUIRE also encompasses the closely linked processes of change and defect management and provides related software quality assurance processes. The framework comprises navigable process flows, including input, process steps, output, and participants. Along with these process flows, documentation templates, guidelines, checklists, measurements and best practices are provided.
Lauter says iLAB Project Services is providing onsite training at Silica and that best-practice maintenance services are standard. The six-week iREQUIRE implementation has gone live and, according to Prentice, Silica is putting some of the tools and functionality to work.
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