In July 2023, Ntegra had the privilege of being invited to Newcastle to participate in Northumbrian Water's Innovation Festival. We were assigned the task of executing a “Hack” on the company's FieldChApp, an application utilised by NWG's field operators to record and collate data pertaining to their on-site operations. This formed part of our wider Innovation Programme aimed at solving real-world problems with rapid, creative solutions.

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One of the major challenges voiced by NWG employees related to difficulties in accurately capturing data from their field operators' job sites. This was partly due to a cohort of seasoned field operators who, despite their proficiency in maintaining the company's infrastructure, exhibited reluctance towards using mobile apps. The volume of data required for asset health purposes and regulatory reporting was overwhelming. Reports of a poor user experience caused both irritations for field operators and frustration amongst data analysts within the asset teams — a common challenge our client’s often encounter during digital transformation projects.

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After undergoing the initial tech discovery session —including research into design concepts and technology considerations with the NWG team — the Ntegra team, drawing on our digital consultancy services, proposed the following solution: a simple comment box capable of accepting either typed or voice inputs.

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By leveraging natural language processing (NLP) from Azure's OpenAI service, the new FieldChApp analysed text and autonomously populated the form. This strategy transformed the onerous task of filling out a complicated and detailed form into a streamlined review process. The field operator can now simply type, or voice record their observations about a job and the NLP takes the text, analyses it, and auto-completes the form with relevant and accurate information. This approach exemplifies how artificial intelligence digital transformation can simplify user experiences and drive operational efficiency.

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Consequently, the field operator's role now is simply to confirm the automatically selected dropdown options — a change driven by the combined efforts of our digital consultants and engineer team behind the delivery.

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The new and improved FieldChApp has the potential to become a game changer for NWG, substantially reducing the 'time-to-quality-data' while improving the field operators' user experience. This allows them to get to their next job more quickly, while also providing analysts with faster access to meaningful and accurate data for higher-quality reporting. The solution not only supports NWG’s digital transformation journey but also aligns with our broader goal to support our clients on achieving cloud centre of excellence.

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“We worked closely with Ntegra and were delighted to be able to prove the concept of using Generative AI within one of our field apps. The level of knowledge in this area was extremely impressive. They actively shared their expertise and insights, demonstrating a genuine desire to make the project as successful as possible. ‍

‍They have a strong focus on innovation and collaboration where all ideas are valued and welcomed. One of the most impressive aspects of working together is the dedication and passion of the team. Each member brings a high level of skill and enthusiasm which helped us solve sometimes complex problems. In summary, our collaboration was incredibly rewarding with scope to expand upon it in the future.” ‍

Tony Pearson | Digital and Geospatial Product Manager at NWG​