State of the Sector
Webapp design and build, data import and export
The Brief
Community Energy England, Community Energy Scotland and Ynni Cymunedol Cymru (Community Energy Wales) approached us asking us to build for them a platform that would allow their member organisations to upload, view and update statistical and descriptive information about their community energy projects across the country. They wanted to be able to collate, export and analyse the data submitted.
The tool needed to be easy for both community members and administrators to use, especially given the complex nature of the data being gathered.
Finally, the Welsh version of the tool needed to have the abiliy to switch seamlessly between English and Welsh language for the user interface and questions in the submission forms.
What was the process?
We proposed building a new webapp using Drupal. We would create an app that:
- Ensured data integrity and held iterative changes as well as current data
- Provided clean, easy to navigate interfaces for community members
- Allowed CEE, CES and CEW to easily export and analyse data
- Enabled community organisations to manage member accounts for multiple individuals
Our Approach
We crafted a visual identity for the website, drawing on existing branding to create a distinct look and feel, creating template designs and a style guide for the new user interface. This was done for each of the 3 partner organisations with a unified layout and bespoke colour schemes across their 3 domains.
Their existing data was collated from existing datasets and imported into the new webapp, providing several years worth of data from the beginning of the project.
We built a bespoke CSV export facility that analysed and pulled together content requested by admin users.
“Southmedia helped us create an online portal for gathering data from organisations in our sector. They were enthusiastic and very helpful setting up the project and always very responsive to our requests for discussion and assistance. Their communication was clear and they remained flexible and helpful as the project’s complexity expanded and new issues or needs emerged. Since the project launched they have remained helpful and communicative and are always ready to find solutions and ways to help us implement things we need to change.”
Phil Coventry, Community Energy England
Outcome and conclusion of the project
The State of the Sector platform has been a huge success since launch, enabling CEE, CES and CEW to more effectively engage with their member organisations and to create meaningful reports and analyses based on their data. In a world where renewable energy is going to be a vital part of our future, the positive impact of such a tool was an essential – and delivered – outcome.
Want to get in touch?
If you’re curious about how we can help you, or you’d like to discuss getting a quote from us, contact us today.