For many years, S&C Electric used internally built tracking and Subversion databases to manage source code, track bugs and manage documents within the technology organization. As the company grew, the team's needs became more complex and required more time and resources to maintain the databases.

"The expertise required and the cost to maintain the system internally was becoming prohibitive, so we began looking for a solution that would be reliable, secure, easy to use, cost effective and scalable as we grew. We also wanted to free up internal resources to focus on our software development efforts, so switching to a supplier's solution meant we gained access to external expertise to handle maintenance and customization as needed," notes Jim Boss, Manager of Network and Desktop Services at S&C Electric.

After evaluating four different solutions, S&C Electric engaged with ProjectLocker in December 2005. Initially Subversion, ProjectLocker's managed source control solution, was used to organize, manage and protect the company's intellectual property. Then, with a large product release on the horizon, the company added ProjectLocker's Trac, and today uses it to keep track of entire projects in one place.

With Trac, S&C Electric can easily manage development across a diverse environment of over thirty software developers in seven different locations and four different time zones. "Some of the locations do application programming, while others do supporting development in the form of Real Time Operating Systems and related tools. With Trac we have a good solution for reporting and tracking resolution of bugs found in those supporting tools," notes Wes Crucius, Senior Engineer at S&C Electric. "We also use Trac at the application programming level to maintain peak efficiency in the face of frequent interruptions and re-prioritizations. Using Trac ensures we avoid debugging or solving the same problems multiple times."

Using ProjectLocker's solutions saves the company a substantial amount of time and provides the company with expertise that wasn't available in house. Previously, a developer managed the internally built system and it required between 10% to 25% of his time each week for implementation and maintenance. With ProjectLocker in place, he can now focus his time on new product development - which ultimately means projects are completed more quickly than before.

In addition, S&C Electric leverages the expertise of the ProjectLocker team on a regular basis. Whenever they want new features added or customizations made to the system, ProjectLocker has the knowledge and experience to execute on it quickly.