The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) oversees energy markets and networks, and assists the ACCC with energy related issues for consumers. In late 2014, PreviousNext were engaged by the AER for the Drupal redevelopment of their Australian Government website, Energy Made Easy.
Challenge
Under the National Energy Retail Law, the AER has a statutory obligation to provide an online price comparator tool to assist customers in comparing energy offers currently available to them. After the initial launch of their Energy Made Easy website in mid 2012, the AER found they were experiencing a number of performance issues which arose as the volume of data on the website increased. They required a new website that would accommodate a greater volume of offers and significantly improve consumer experience by offering users an accessible and easy-to-use tool.
Solution
Due to the complicated nature of comparing energy offers across various retailers, a carefully considered development solution was required for the Energy Made Easy website in order to improve performance and functionality. With a focus on user experience, the EME platform was built with a simple user interface, supported by a comparatively complex backend. Underpinned by a high availability AWS infrastructure, Drupal was at the core of the solution, however, numerous other third party technologies were also integrated in order to build a highly bespoke platform that would meet all requirements.
Outcome
A flagship project that demonstrates the extent of our expertise and experience, the new Energy Made Easy website was successfully launched in June 2015. Our engagement continues as PreviousNext make ongoing enhancements to the site and support both the platform and the hosting infrastructure.
energymadeeasy.gov.au