The Oil Exploration department was using Excel add-ins to solve some statistical problems in their assessment of the likelihood of oil discoveries based on complex geological data. The add-in tools that had been bought, did not provide all of the required functionality.

We were asked to get involved because of our reputation for creating operational solutions for complex problems. We evaluated all the options and then helped the client negotiate with the add-in provider to purchase and unlock the software. This enabled us to work with their analysts and reprogramme and enhance the add-in tools to their particular requirements. This involved modifying the @Risk add-in software for the more complex modelling requirements of North Sea exploration.

The result was a step change in the functionality of the tool, at a fraction of the cost of recreating it as a custom tool from scratch.