About Client
Our client is a well-established IT services company that has positioned itself as a brand of choice in the digital transformation space. The company specializes in delivering quick-to-market, innovative solutions that combine business process automation, packaged best practices, and custom-built platforms. Leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, SaaS ERP, cloud, and mobility solutions, they help enterprises automate core operations so they can focus on strategic growth. Their expertise also extends into digital consulting, marketing automation, and industry-specific SaaS solutions, with a particularly strong presence in the automotive sector. Solutions are designed with flexibility in mind: they can be deployed on-premise, hosted in the cloud, and fully supported long term.
One of their key customers is a leading South African energy company and one of the nation’s largest producers of thermal coal. This company is a cornerstone of South Africa’s energy security by supplying Eskom, the national utility, with fuel for base-load power generation. Through acquisitions of major mines from Anglo American and South32, their end customer has rapidly scaled operations and today employs thousands across multiple mining complexes. The company’s activities are mission-critical to the country’s power grid, while also being tightly regulated in terms of compliance, environmental sustainability, and community development.
Elinext partnered with the IT services company to deliver web development services in the form of a production-grade platform, document generation software for the end customer. The goal was to empower distributed teams to collaborate in real time and to create a custom document generation tool that streamlined the creation of complex, compliance-heavy documents: critical for the energy company.
Business Challenge
The IT services company approached Elinext with the need to transform a working prototype into a production-grade platform that could support mission-critical operations for one of their largest clients, Seriti Resources. The existing document generation software was functional but lacked the robustness, scalability, and security needed to be deployed in a live production environment where thousands of users and documents had to be managed daily.
A key requirement was the creation of a real-time collaboration platform for document generation software . For energy company’s distributed teams: spread across multiple mining complexes and corporate offices, the ability to work together on the same documents and processes without delays was essential. The company needed an automated document generation software where multiple users could simultaneously view, edit, and update information while maintaining data integrity, audit trails, and compliance with strict enterprise security policies.
Another critical objective was to reduce long-term costs and gain greater control over document generation with the help of document generation system. Up until that point, the IT company had relied on a third-party service to generate business documents, which not only created additional licensing expenses but also introduced limitations in terms of customization, integration, and performance. They needed a custom-built document generation module that would be fully integrated with the new platform, tailored to their unique workflows, and capable of handling complex, regulation-heavy documents required by a client like Seriti Resources.
In summary, Elinext was tasked to:
- Re-engineer the prototype into a secure, scalable, production-ready automated document generation software.
- Develop a robust real-time collaboration environment (document generation system) enabling multiple users to work together seamlessly.
- Replace the external document generation service with a fully custom solution that would cut costs and give the company complete control over document workflows.
This project was not simply about upgrading technology; it was about creating a document generation system that would allow the IT services provider to deliver a more efficient, cost-effective, and future-proof solution to the end customer, while strengthening their own competitive position in the digital transformation market.
Process
Elinext partnered with the IT services company to transform their prototype into a production-grade automated document generation software. The work was carried out step by step to ensure scalability, reliability, and long-term maintainability.
Knowledge ramp-up
Our engineers began with in-depth discovery sessions to understand the client’s prototype, business requirements, and technical constraints. This phase helped align on expectations and ensure that the final system would support both the IT services provider and their end customer.
Integration
We re-engineered the initial prototype into a scalable, secure, and performance-optimized architecture. This included designing both backend and frontend components to handle high concurrency and ensuring that the platform would remain stable under enterprise-level workloads.
Collaboration module development
A central focus was the creation of real-time collaboration features fir the document generation tool. Elinext implemented backend synchronization services and frontend interaction layers that allowed multiple users to edit and view content simultaneously. Robust conflict-resolution logic and data integrity checks were embedded to guarantee seamless teamwork across distributed offices.
Custom document generation
The team replaced the third-party document generation service with a fully custom-built module in document generation system. This new document generation system component was deeply integrated with the platform, capable of handling complex business templates, and optimized to generate documents quickly and securely. By doing so, the client gained full control over the process and significantly reduced licensing and operational costs.
Testing & optimization
QA and software testing services of document generation tool include extensive QA cycles that were conducted to validate system performance, data security, and compliance with industry standards. The platform was stress-tested for real-time editing, high-volume document generation, and user concurrency. Continuous optimization ensured smooth deployment into production.
Final Product Overview
Elinext successfully transformed the client’s prototype into a production-grade platform that is stable, scalable, and ready for real-world use. The system was designed not only to meet immediate business needs but also to serve as a foundation for future growth and enhancements.
A central achievement was the development of real-time collaboration features. The platform enables multiple users to work together simultaneously, view updates instantly, and maintain full data integrity. This capability has dramatically improved teamwork for distributed teams and provided a seamless, modern user experience.
Another key deliverable was the creation of a custom document generation module. By replacing the client’s dependency on a third-party service, Elinext gave them greater control, improved performance, and reduced recurring licensing costs. The new tool handles complex templates, integrates tightly with the platform, and supports the generation of documents required by highly regulated industries.
Elinext also improved and refactored existing code of document generation system, ensuring the system met enterprise standards of reliability and performance. The development team worked under tight deadlines, implementing best practices that stabilized the platform and optimized speed.
To support long-term quality, Elinext’s QA specialists introduced structured testing workflows and gradually incorporated test automation, which strengthened regression testing and increased confidence in frequent releases.
Finally, during the course of the project, the client began transitioning to a more Agile way of working. Elinext provided both technical and organizational support throughout this shift, offering guidance on process adjustments and ensuring smooth alignment with iterative development cycles.
Key Deliverables
- A full production-ready platform built on a scalable architecture
- Real-time collaboration features enable seamless teamwork
- A custom document generation module replacing third-party tools
- Refactored and optimized code for stability and performance
- Enhanced QA workflows with the introduction of test automation
- Ongoing support during the client’s transition to Agile project management
Business Effects for Client
The project delivered measurable improvements that demonstrated clear progress and long-term value for the client thanks to our custom software development services.
- The reliance on a third-party document service was fully eliminated through a custom-built document generation module. This reduced ongoing licensing costs, provided full ownership of document workflows, and improved integration with the client’s ecosystem.
- The platform was successfully re-engineered into a production-grade system, improving stability, maintainability, and scalability.
- Real-time collaboration features enabled distributed teams to work together seamlessly and securely, significantly improving efficiency and user experience.
- QA workflows were refined and formalized, allowing issues to be caught earlier in the development cycle. This improved overall product quality.
- Test automation was introduced later in the project, accelerating regression testing and increasing confidence in frequent releases.
- The client successfully transitioned to a more agile methodology, with Elinext providing ongoing guidance and support to make the shift smooth and effective.
Overall, the new system became more efficient, cost-effective, and future-ready, providing a solid foundation for scale and long-term sustainability.
