A leading global supplier of offshore floating platforms for the oil and gas industry has been running its asset maintenance activity from its headquarters in Ghana using highly customized IBM Maximo Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) software.
The Challenge
The Client’s EAM system depended on several bespoke applications, which had negatively influenced Maximo’s performance. The desire to optimize and achieve its asset management goals led to the company engaging Cohesive (SRO), the IBM Maximo experts for the oil & gas industry. During its audit process, Cohesive (SRO) identified several optimization areas and started implementing the improvement developments.
One of the identified issues hindering the software operation was the testing setup. It lacked quality, structure, and scope, leading to frequent, uncaught issues in the production environment. With the view of Maximo security restructuring, the need for efficient regression testing became apparent. As repeated testing issues were a considerable threat to the system, searching for a more efficient and less erroneous solution to solve the testing issue was triggered.
Automation is the answer
Cohesive (SRO) suggested implementing Test Automation to handle the predicted workload. After exploring a variety of specialized and unspecialized Maximo automation tools and carrying out a cost-benefit analysis that factored in time effectiveness and functionality, the MaxTAF solution was identified as the optimal tool to suit the client’s needs.
MaxTAF is a unique testing solution that consolidates all areas of testing into a single access point. It includes the framework and test development, test data management, scheduling, and reporting, and integrates with the most popular DevOps and CI tooling.
Using detailed manual test scripts and system documentation, Cohesive (SRO) was able to get underway with the project. Within just three months, the MaxTAF test recorder, assisted by the XML scripting language, enabled the team to produce over 200 test cases and helped with the efficient delivery of the project.
The regular progress meetings with MaxTAF code developers and Cohesive (SRO) specialists facilitated by the client allowed the real-time build-up of the suite of tests and Cohesive (SRO) quickly resolved any issues, so the project ran smoothly and without delays.
The Solution
All business-critical areas were identified by Cohesive (SRO), which were then documented to improve testing performance. Several workshops were then held with various Maximo stakeholders to fully understand the existing issues and expected outcomes. The project team wrote up the formats for testing, with a list of high-level test cases for the client’s testers to follow.
Whilst trialing the new test cases, the team uncovered another potential obstacle – scalability. The scope of the cases library meant that to complete all tests upon new releases, the client had to dedicate numerous hours to ensure relevant functionalities were checked. With tight project deadlines, Cohesive (SRO) had to look for a more feasible solution to mitigate the risk of incomplete or deficient testing.
The result
By delivering the new MaxTAF test scripts, the client’s test coverage and overall testing productivity have improved vastly. The client can now test business-critical areas of their Maximo system without fear of introducing uncaught regressions.
Cohesive (SRO) and MaxTAF left the client with a fully functional, documented, and flexible automation suite that can be run at any time, and if needed, be scheduled regularly.
Key solution benefits:
- The entire system is fully documented with SME workshops
- 200 automated scripts created in 3 months
- Efficient project delivery
Maximo EAM Benefits:
- Flexible deployment
- A better picture of asset health
- Intelligent scheduling
- Robust integration framework
- Continuous delivery
