From development of a web application to ongoing operation
codecentric developed customized software for automotive appraisers for Experts24 Tassone GmbH and has been maintaining it for three years now – including dynamic further development.
Experts24 is an established franchise system for automotive experts in North Rhine-Westphalia and throughout Germany. Franchisees benefit from central administration, modern software, training, and targeted marketing—leaving them more time for their core business. The family-run Experts24 Tassone GmbH combines over 30 years of experience with digital efficiency: for strong partners and satisfied customers.
The project at a glance
- Digitization of the entire damage assessment process and elimination of media discontinuity
- Simplification and significant time savings in the preparation of expert reports
- Close and trusting cooperation with short feedback cycles
- Continuous maintenance, operation, and further development of the application beyond the go-live date
Background
Experts24 Tassone GmbH previously created vehicle reports using an old client-server application. These reports were based on vehicle inspections carried out by Experts24 experts on site at the customer's premises. The documentation was traditionally carried out using forms and digital cameras. The form data, photos, and inspection results were then transferred to a digital file for further processing in the back office in a manual process that was prone to errors and took a considerable amount of time.
Experts24 approached codecentric with the objective to modernize this process. A progressive web application for desktop and mobile devices was to optimize the workflow, significantly increase efficiency, and eliminate the need for double data entry. In addition, the need for continuous expansion and maintenance of the application was formulated, as these tasks could not be performed with internal resources.
Solution
Project Kickoff
Go-live
Continuous Operation
Project Kickoff
In 2020, codecentric AG worked with Experts24 to develop and prioritize a list of minimum requirements in order to be able to use a functional application productively as quickly as possible. This application was gradually expanded and improved in subsequent development cycles. Close collaboration between Experts24 and codecentric enabled short and fast development cycles, allowing for quick and constructive feedback on individual features.
Thanks to the use of cloud provider AWS and its cloud services AppSync, Cognito, S3, DynamoDB, and Lambda, the basic building blocks of the application could be defined and orchestrated very quickly. A CI/CD pipeline ensured the automated execution of all unit and interface tests and rollout to all development and production environments.
Experts24 employees had access to a working application in the development environment at all times to review the progress of the features and provide constructive feedback. This kept development cycles short and effective and prevented misguided developments.
Go-live
Since then, experts have been able to record damage incidents completely digitally and use the following features:
- Recognize and read all necessary information from the vehicle registration certificate by photographing it using AWS Rekognition
- Record necessary information for parties involved, such as clients, vehicle owners, the opposing party in the accident, insurance companies, repair shops, or lawyers
- Automatically identify the vehicle based on the chassis number and the web services of Deutsche Automobil Treuhand (DAT)
- Capture all relevant information about the vehicle, including automatic enrichment of this data via the DAT web services
- Textual documentation of the extent of damage, including photos taken
- Processing and annotation of damage photos directly in the application
- Preparation of expert reports as PDF files and sending them to all parties involved by email
The process can be managed entirely digitally in the back office. This includes the following activities:
- Repair calculation and vehicle valuation in the application via DAT's web services
- Management of text modules for report generation
- Digital requests for residual value offers
- Content review of the process for correctness
In addition, the software solution is multi-client capable, which enables Experts24, as a franchisor, to act as a software provider for freelancers and other companies, offer data protection-compliant collaboration, and thus expand its business field.
Continuous Operation
Since going live in 2021, the application has been maintained and continuously developed by codecentric AG. Existing functions are continuously adapted to new requirements, resulting in the implementation of additional types of reports, adjustments to new legal and technical requirements, and connections to external software solutions (e.g., for liquidity planning). Optimization potential outside of report creation has also been realized, and Experts24 has therefore commissioned codecentric AG to develop its own accounting system within the application. This will eliminate media breaks and further accelerate processing.
Result
Experts24 employees and all franchisees now use the application as their central tool for damage assessment. Many of the processes that previously required time-consuming manual processing can now be carried out in a short space of time, allowing the back office to generate reports at the touch of a button. From the expert uploading damage photos to quality assurance and sending the report as a PDF: what previously could only be done using paper forms and numerous media breaks can now usually be completed within a few days, regardless of the complexity of the process. Customers benefit from faster claims processing, and Experts24's partners benefit from an integrated solution that makes it easier for them to submit their reports.
Thanks to the excellent and close cooperation between Experts24 and codecentric AG, an application has been created that digitizes Experts24's central business processes and positions the company technologically robust for the future. In addition, Experts24 has gained a long-term partner in codecentric, which responsibly ensures the smooth operation of its application and continuously adapts it to new internal and external requirements.
Pierantonio Tassone
Managing Director at Experts24 Tassone GmbH
Working with codecentric has made our day-to-day work noticeably easier. Our experts can now focus fully on their assessments, while many time-consuming manual processes are now carried out digitally and efficiently. Our partners and customers benefit from faster processing—and we benefit from a reliable technology partner who is constantly developing our solution further.
Pierantonio Tassone
Managing Director at Experts24 Tassone GmbH
Any questions about the project?
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Further reference projects
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