What they say about us
RESULTS
4
month
development process to meet time to market
Project goal
Build and iterate native iOS and Android apps for dairy data analytics & collaboration
Technologies
SwiftUI | Jetpack Compose | Combine | Django | TimeScale | AWS | Kubernetes
Highlights
Integration with third-party data providers | Native look & feel
RESULTS
4 month
development process to meet time to market
Project goal
Build a collaborative dashboard software for dairy data analytics & collaboration
Highlights
Integration with third-party data providers | Native look & feel
Technologies
SwiftUI | Jetpack Compose | Combine | Django | TimeScale | AWS | Kubernetes
Vyla was created to facilitate collaboration in the dairy industry
Vyla was created to facilitate collaboration in the dairy industry
In a dairy supply chain, there are many steps and stakeholders involved: the farmer who owns livestock, the producers who develop dairy products, the retailers who commercialize the products, the consumers who buy them, and so on. Even though these roles are all part of the same process, they don’t always communicate or collaborate in an optimal, transparent way. This was the problem that Vyla sought to solve. It disrupts data silos and generates a more transparent and connected production process.
The startup is backed by dairy giants like Nestle, Land O’Lakes and Lely Group.
Absorbing data to make dairy operations more efficient
Absorbing data to make dairy operations more efficient
The startup envisioned a collaborative dashboard software to better connect the production process and players to increase collaboration and improve results. Even though the Vyla team has extensive industry knowledge, they still decided to partner with an expert tech company for the product’s development. And because of our experience in developing solutions for the dairy industry, we were a perfect fit.
Native iPhone app to access farm data
Native iPhone app to access farm data
Using Vyla, farmers can check out data from different sources in a single place. The app has a cool and configurable UX/UI, in which users decide what information they want to see and how they want to visualize it, via widgets that include different farm KPIs. The data is provided by a third-party company that specializes in dairy metrics.
Vyla’s first version was built in iOS. SwiftUI was our go-to framework for developing a scalable, efficient product. This tool helped us meet deadlines without compromising quality. We knew this app would incorporate new functionalities and users over time, so it was important to create the right structures to ensure the product's evolution. In addition to receiving information, users can also take informed actions by creating tasks and sharing information easily.
Expanding user access with Android app
Expanding user access with Android app
A few months after launching the iOS app, we set up a team for developing its Android version. The second app will offer the same functionalities as the previous version, respecting Android’s look and feel. For that, our designers relied on Material Design guidelines for improved usability and organization of the app’s design and development. The dev team chose Jetpack Compose for the software development.
Along with the Product Owner from the client side, we defined the priorities for both products and worked on dedicated sprints for delivering new releases frequently to the app stores.
How it works
Dashboards
Each company has a unique data dashboard for every farm it owns. Also, there’s a company-level dashboard where users can compare all the farms’ KPIs in one place.
Customize
Users can access different farms’ information by selecting the kind of widgets and metrics they want to see on their dashboards.
Widgets
Data comes directly from third-party providers, and users can determine how they want to see it by selecting their preferred graphic styles in the widgets.
Easy access
Administrators and supervisors can invite other people to access the app with a specific role: administrator, supervisor, worker, or consultant.
Teamwork
Based on the data available, users can share information with other team members, create tasks, and assign them (currently only available in the iOS app).
Communicate
The person responsible for the task can change its status from ‘in progress’ to ‘concluded’ and communicate with others through chat functionality (currently only available in the iOS app).
Do you want to transform your business and your users’ lives?
Delivering a world-class product in only four months
Delivering a collaborative dashboard software in only four months
Our client had a strict time frame to fulfill and our team aligned with their expectations. Launching the iPhone app on time was key so the Vyla team could unlock new investment rounds and continue towards a solution by building the Android version.
Amidst the challenges, we highlight our focus on data management and native app development to meet the client’s requirements, as well as on the products’ ability to present the large amount of data in a clear, concise way. We also established a productive relationship with the data provider team, exchanging ideas constantly to determine the best way to consume and display their data.
Another important initiative we led in this project was the integration of specific QA processes into the development progress. A QA Engineer joined the team and worked alongside the other roles on the incorporation of QA sprints focusing on validating the design and development assets with several tools and better practices to manage the Test Cases, incidents and deploys to the environments. The good practices included unit tests and UI tests for making sure every iteration functioned smoothly.
This is how we
engaged
Design Sprint
We started the project started in a design sprint to learn and define key concepts about both the business and the users, in order to precisely identify the course of development.
Development
During the Development phase we worked on weekly sprints, setting goals and showcasing results in frequent demos to validate ideas quickly and move forward with confidence.
Prototyping
After validating the first prototypes, we had everything in place for final product development. The development team was entirely on our side, and the client’s PO was our main connection point for solving issues and resolving doubts.
Implementation
Thanks to our agile work methodology and our teams’ results-orientation, we adapted perfectly to the changes our client proposed along the way, minimizing risks. Since the app’s first launch, we continue to iterate the product following bi-weekly sprints.
Continuous Delivery
Since the app’s first launch, we continue to iterate the product following bi-weekly sprints. Our dev and QA teams work in parallel to improve the app’s features and make sure they’re working properly.
A product and partnership that keeps evolving
A product and partnership that keeps evolving
The iOS app launched in April 2021, and later in November we delivered the Android product. Nowadays, 18 farms in the US are implementing Vyla as part of their daily work and, as more clients implement the solution in their barns, we’re focused on adding new features based on users' needs and improving existing UX/UI aspects based on our Design team QA process.
Today, our professionals are organized in three teams: iOS, Android, and Backend. Recently we added new data sources to the app, such as animal reproduction and feeding, inventory, and more. We also integrated with another dairy solution, the DairyBOS app, another client of ours. Users can now access data such as temperature and other space-related metrics.
The iOS app, which is a few months ahead of the Android one, now offers users the possibility to cross metrics and compare different data and the correlation between them. In the future, Vyla will start to incorporate other kinds of data sources and users into its solution, such as processors, retailers, consumers, and other dairy stakeholders. We look forward to our continued collaboration and future work with them.
If you’d like to know more about our experience building dairy apps, take a look at this blog post and download our free ebook “Your Dairy App Checklist”.
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