AEROSPACE, CIVIL & DEFENCE

DSHK CS#8 / DSHK 1631 CON

AN AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGIES GROUP
WITH AN EYE TO THE FUTURE

“Concept#" is the code name given to projects that can't be referred to by name, as in this case. Due to confidentiality agreements, the company that this project was conceived for cannot be named, however the client has kindly given permission to case study the process, goals, mission and solutions. This case study and the graphics used within have been submitted to the client for approval before use.

- THE NOT SO BRIEF -

The brief for this project was 24 pages long, however we have distilled it down to the following 5 key requirements:

1. Re-design the look and feel of the website and digital assets; incorporating existing brand.
2. As part of a larger campaign; to increase market share, leading through to share price increase and therefore company value.
3. Update and improve internet, intranet and company online/offline digital comms systems, with special attention to the user experience UX.
4. Distill the company message and values; making them easy to discover, share and digest.
5. In general: “just make the company look awesome” (Directors words). 

- THE GOAL -

HOMEPAGE IN FULL, SHOWING THE MULTI-ROLE CONTENT PODS
CLICK TO VIEW IN BROWSER

- BETTER COMMUNICATIONS -

The solution here was for the site and system to dovetail with the company’s existing IT. Improved communication between departments and indeed between existing clients, many of which had been partners for many years, with a necessary a boost to hearts and minds, as well as to oil the wheels of communication for company sales teams in overseas territories.

- THE BRAND - 

The company brand was redesigned before and had been sitting uncomfortably with the old website design for a while. It was this new brand where we would take our lead for the new site, making sure that all looked like it had been created at the same time by the same person and so establishing a corporate ID that could be followed in the future.

CMS (Content Management System)

CMS was a key requirement for the site put forward by Deshok. It needed to be easy to use for a painless take-up by staff whose job it was to update the website. A custom CMS system was developed for the client that quickly showed attributes that could be adapted for customers, departments and managers to use offsite (see Intranet).

Beyond the scope of this case study, a system was developed that basically meant we could use one CMS for all applications; website, mobile, intranet, microsite builder, microsite manager and the MPP (Mobile Procurement Platform). Very basically this was achieved with a CMS that would include or exclude features depending on the application it was being used for.

- CONCEPT / THE CREATIVE WEBSITE -

ABOUR PAGE OPEN AND DEMONSTRATING THE DROP-DOWN MENU OPTION

We wanted to do something as different as design perimeters would allow, so we developed a full screen look and feel, featuring big beautiful background images that would change to suit the subject of the page or in the case of the website home page, could be used to promote features of special interest. Floating over the dynamic backgrounds are the content pods which can feature text, videos, static or gallery images, or dynamically feed animated marques of latest news headlines. These content pods provide a striking contrast against the backgrounds, which to follow brand ideals, are predominately blue.

- MOBILE WEBSITE -

The client’s brief with regard to mobile was informed and confident in that the requirement was to divulge only key information and news snippets, without bulking the site up and making downloads tedious. We were also tasked with giving the mobile visitor a strong option to ‘Visit the main desktop site’.

ONE OF THE MOBILISED WEBSITE CONCEPTS, OPTIMISED FOR IPHONE6

The look and feel for the mobile site needed to fit with established style guides set down by the brand and the main website, whilst maintaining speedy download performance. It was decided that a reactive configuration would not be viable as there would be too much of compromise with regard to design and we also needed more control over what content was served up from the one CMS servicing all systems. As a nice finishing touch we designed a custom iPhone home screen icon for visitors to download to their iPhone and iPad, providing a quick and convenient hot link to the site.

CUSTOM IPHONE / IPAD HOME SCREEN ICON

- CMS VIA MOBILE DEVICES -

A fully mobile version of the CMS was designed and developed to allow off-site personnel to post from anywhere in the world via 3G WiFi and in the near future 4G. Initially the usefulness for this was called into question, but as a result of development it became clear that a highly useful platform for the communication of off-site, infield managers to check stocks of parts and then place orders for those parts anywhere in the world, proved very useful.

MPP (Mobile Procurement Platform)

MPP HOME SCREEN. TAP TO ENTER

MPP VERY SIMPLE TO USE SEARCH STOCK ENGINE

As the IFMs (In Field Managers) were issued with iPad tablets already, the MPP (Mobile Procurement Platform) was optimised for these devices only, making the project easier for Deshok to implement and therefore enabling us to incorporate extra options for ease of use that would not be possible as a cross platform device.

"Get the sales force behind it and you're home".

They say that nobody likes change, when really nobody likes change unless it makes their lives easier or more enjoyable. The company’s sales force needed convincing that the plans for MPP would be for the better.

MPP STOCK INTERFACE. DEMONSTRATING A COMPLETED SEARCH ACTION

At best it was thought it would just mean more work, at worst it would put people out of jobs. So right from the beginning line managers were consulted and indeed asked what they wanted to see; what would make life easier for their sales teams? Many ideas were put forward, some more serious than others, but the main concern was that nothing new would have to be learnt; that the new systems would look and work like the existing. It was a real pleasure to be able to implement this for the teams. One of our favourite quotes was...

"This is great; it does what it always did only now it does more!"

INTRANET (In-Tra-Net) - Intranet explained

‘Intranet’ : a small Internet for inside an organisation.  Intranet is a web-based system, but used within a smaller area. A company for instance, can allow departments to communicate with each other via a secure intranet system, not accessible to anyone else on the wider Internet. This can be especially useful for secure comms between departments in the same building, in the same town or the other side of the world: it’s all intranet.

"Use what we have but make it so people want to use it!"

The client already had an intranet system, but it was under used by staff saying it was too hard to use and quote;

“Got in the way of real work".

As with the CMS, a custom application was developed that dovetailed with the existing in-house system that most staff were already using (basically, we made it look like familiar).

New features put forward was the custom microsite builder and manager, allowing departments to build their own in-house website/microsite so as to promote new services, products and developments. Another feature was a central assets database of logos, graphics, photographs and videos that departments could upload and share with-in the group. Some assets were also made available to the media for use with newspaper reports for instance. This database is accessed via a secure, password required server.

- THE BRIEF REWRITTEN -

As is sometimes the case, the original brief was just a springboard for more ideas and more solutions, that had to be incorporated into a new, rewritten brief. Originally the requirement was for a newly designed website incorporating the new logo, this then lead to a custom content management system for the site that could be quite easily reconfigured by Deshok for use as an in-house parts availability and ordering system (MPP). This lead to the proposal for an improved company intranet system; all with the same (CMS) that looked familiar and easy to use. These completely coherent front-end, back-end systems all went to show that the company was serious and had a robust plan for future development. This was not a tired company that was winding down, but rather an established company; young and vigorous at heart, curious to see what the future could provide and be completely ready for it.

- IN CONCLUSION -

• A much improved website: look, feel and usability
• Integration of the website and new assets with the brand
• The introduction of a mobile specific website for smartphones and tablets
• Improved in-house digital comms interface that staff will actually use
• MPP Mobile Procurement Platform: stock check, availability and ordering
• CMS with a familiar interface, easy to use and one system for all

- THE RESULTS -

This project is still in the development stage but has already been considered by the board to be mission accomplished, helping to place the company and group on a much stronger footing for future growth. It is also understood that this Deshok project is to be implemented and rolled out for other sectors of the group internationally Job done!