The “Stadtwerk am See” is an energy supplier at the Lake Constance (locations in Überlingen and Friedrichshafen), which stands for innovation. The company also participates in regional projects that benefit the environment. Examples include the catamaran in Friedrichshafen and Constance. And it also has its own support programmes for electromobility.

Service portal for communities

GOAL

“We would like to help cities and communities in the region to exchange services more easily,” explains project manager Oliver Hoch from Stadtwerk am See. “Often one community has what the other needs at the moment – we want to create this network and make it easily accessible”. This applies both to machines and to employees with special know-how.

Together with two students Patricia Meyer and Marie Schulz I created a prototype with the content management system WordPress including plugins.

PROCESS

During development, a huge amount of time was invested in planning and conception. We had to prioritize what the necessary functions were and what add-ons could be. For this reason, a detailed project structure plan including user stories was worked out.

The target group consists primarily of the employees of communities that will use this platform. This includes young people up to retirement age. For this reason, employees with little technical know-how must be able to use the software intuitively and easily.

During implementation, attention was paid to a responsive design, as local communities are also increasingly using modern technologies such as tablets and smartphones.

On the homepage is the possibility to book, offer, search or delete services. Everything was kept very simple and clearly arranged. In order to underline the importance of the ads and to make them easier to understand, preview pictures and descriptive texts have been integrated. The appearance of the ads was completed by the contact details of the contact persons.

RESULT

The continuous discussions and analyses in cooperation with the Stadtwerk am See were as exciting as the development of the online platform. With this platform, the communal and regional Stadtwerk will further improve its networking with the communities in the Lake Constance region.

It is especially nice to know that the Stadtwerk am See will definitely realize our work.