With different industrial markets being influenced by constant changes in technology, it is crucial for businesses to evolve with technology.

Speaking at engineering software and consulting company SSG Consulting’s latest KEY360 Mega Demo in March, CEO Steven Golding said that the Internet would be the backbone of businesses. “So, rather than shunning it for its faults, we are striving to use its potential to bring people, business and even continents closer together.”

The company holds demonstrations to interactively demonstrate the features of their KEY360 Management Systems Software and highlights the advanced technology around which the software is modelled for better use in mining projects.

SSG Consulting is using the KEY360 Management Systems Software at the Grootegeluk Medupi expansion project for mining group Exxaro, which saw the design-review facilitation, review action list coordination, enquiry technical support and adjudication facilitation, contract management, project controls assistance, engineering support, document control and punching support.

The software has also been used in the implementation of the brownfield projects at Medupi.

“KEY360 Management Systems Software is a data processing and management tool that helps companies manage projects and develop assets. SSG Consulting currently has 70 systems running on KEY360 and currently mainly sells it to South African companies. Because of its developed technology, a lot of clients can also use it abroad,” Golding explains.

For this reason, SSG Consulting has modelled its KEY360 software to connect people from different spheres of life, irrespective of their location. The KEY360 Cloud-based server stores all the company’s documents, images and other files, which allows limitless access to all the information about ongoing projects, even when one is not on site or even on a different continent.

“Instead of storing all your information on your computer’s hard drive and then emailing relevant files to your colleagues and clients, you store the information on a central, online database. And, instead of executing your project management manu- ally or trying to synchronise your Microsoft Outlook calendars at work, you have a central dashboard-landing page indicating the latest activity. Our clients can access a specific project to check its progress or set an alert that will notify the right person at the right time of a task required for a project,” he explains.

SSG Consulting also provides training and consulting services for its clients by sending personnel to site to assist clients with software implementation, training and handholding. SSG Consulting also provides recommendations during the software development process and consulting services that allow clients to have access to industry experts in project management.

“Our client base has been doubling every year for the last five years, so, based on the response we are getting, we host Mega Demos every four months. We will probably grow our capacity and are looking at more projects. We are simultaneously working on about ten projects a year and doubling up on that would lead to about 20 projects. However, it is difficult to say if we will be able to work on such a large number of projects each year, given the size of the projects or the companies,” he says.

SSG Consulting mentions that the software market is a difficult one in terms of selling software and, therefore, the Mega Demos serve as an opportunity to network as well as providing a relaxed environment for existing and potential clients.