Following entry is a record in the “Catalogue of Catastrophe” – a list of failed and troubled projects from around the world.
Centrica PLC – UK
Project name : Jupiter
Date : Feb 2007 Cost :$6340M USD
Synopsis :
Efforts to combine billing systems for electrical and gas supply into a single system dissolve into a shambles. Level of manual intervention required to handle billings exceeds ability of staff to keep up with the system. Additional 2,500 recruited to try to restore order. As many as 1,000,000 customers reported to have moved to other suppliers.
Contributing factors as reported in the press :
Inadequate computer hardware. Failure to integrate the system properly. Failure to design into the system adequate management information (final one there sounds like requirements flaws – RG).
Reference links :