It has become apparent that catching problems at the UAT - or even worse the Systems Integration level is too expensive. If a software bug or code error is fixed at the developer level, it could be estimated that it costs $10. It costs ten times as much to catch that same bug or code error at the QA level, another ten-fold increase in costs to catch it at the UAT level and a hundred-fold at the Systems Integration level.

Many Developers are still testing their code against homegrown, limited functionality host simulators, which are of benefit to the developer, but these homegrown and often undocumented tools are simply another island of technology within the organization which do not benefit the enterprise as a whole.

The Quality Assurance group has a well-defined process for testing, that is upgraded manually as each new application arrives, with a substantial dependence on the 'Legacy knowledge' of their long-term staff.

User Acceptance testing is seen as the last point of protection for the organization in terms of rolling out changes to applications and systems. Although they utilize well-defined scripts and documented processes, it is very time consuming and error-prone because of reliance on manual processes.

Organizations must make sure code errors or bugs, do not slip into the production environment where the costs and damage to the organization can be catastrophic, both financially and in terms of the organization's reputation or brand.

So how does Lexcel automate this process and extend the benefits of automation throughout the Development, Systems, UAT and QA groups?

Lexcel's products give Developers desktop access to a host simulator or transaction generation application so they can test code more often. Validating code more frequently - every 10 lines versus every 200 - will realize enormous gains in productivity. Developers are able to produce more error free code - Faster!

QA will have access to the same scripting and test scenario setups that are used by UAT. QA will catch more issues earlier, costs will be lower, scripts run more often, and smaller units of changed code can be tested against a known and approved script.

The Systems Group has access to the full set of certification and test scripts used by UAT, as well as their own base and modified scripts for existing applications and programs already in production.

All of the tools and applications as used by each group are designed to operate on the desktop over a server-based configuration and optimized to support the exchange of information between Developers of device applications, host applications, QA, UAT and the Systems Integration groups. Now an organization is ready to efficiently and effectively meet the every-day challenges faced by today's business operations, dependent on their IT group.

Using the same methodology, process, tools and systems already in place but reconfigured to address the required capability each application outlined below, demands. Functional needs that can now be met with minimal investments include:

• Performance Analysis
• Business Continuity
• Clearing and Settlement
• Contract Compliance
• Virtual Pilots
• Sarbanes Oxley Improved Scorecard
• Migration Management and Control
• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Capacity Planning

Lexcel Workbench enables users to logically group scripts, trace files and configuration information into hierarchical tests and projects for sharing throughout an organization. Trace files and configuration data are saved and restored for later repeatable regression tests, which provide a high degree of inter-operation and consistent testing platforms between Development, Quality Assurance, UAT and the Systems Integration groups.

With Lexcel Workbench, users open a single application -- rather than several independent applications -- to perform ALL of their baseline, acceptance, regression, negative and volume testing scenarios. This one-look-see-all view consolidates Lexcel’s validation, capturing and reporting applications, making them all accessible by a single click of the mouse.

Current Testing Challenges		Lexcel Advantages / Solutions
The test execution process entails performing multiple manual sequences of transaction exchanges, audit capture, and review to validate functionality for a designated testing purpose (Unit testing, Regression testing, Integration testing, etc.)		Script Builder™ defines content specifically for each transaction format SessionReview™ captures and analyzes testing results AutoRegression™ validates baseline vs. regression testing runs These powerful applications are combined into a single unique instance of Lexcel Workbench, resulting in a 'one-look-see-all' view of any project.
Quality Assurance or Development personnel do not utilize the same set of test scripts and test cases to validate coding changes or new functionality		Lexcel Workbench is loaded to each individual’s workstation, where project files can be Exported / Imported from desktop to desktop, allowing the testing platform to be consistent and instantly available, resulting in increased productivity and testing management
Testers must build transactions, define settings and manually create audits each time they want to test		When a new project is created or an existing project is opened, all settings and scripts are made available to the user and an audit file is automatically created with the current date and time to capture transaction exchanges, resulting in streamlined test execution and management of testing results