When coffee meets code: how our dev team crafted Platned Mahara

It all began with a persistent bug, an impromptu brainstorming session, and more cups of Ceylon tea and strong coffee than we’d care to admit. Somewhere between debugging flaky builds and passionately debating tabs versus spaces, our team of developers had a lightbulb moment: what if we created an AI-powered APT (Automated Process Testing) tool to streamline and automate IFS Cloud testing processes?

What followed was a glorious mix of late-night brain-storming sessions, spirited discussions over spicy kottu roti, and one AI-powered solution that started to feel just a little too clever. This is the tale of how our team brought Platned Mahara to life – a tool built to transform IFS Cloud testing.

Powered by experience

Speaking on behalf of the dev team, Thushitha Chandrasiri, Lead ERP Consultant proudly pointed out “Our leadership has a cumulation of over 250 years of IFS work experience.” That’s not a typo. That’s two and half centuries of IFS know-how crammed into one team.

That depth of experience is exactly what fuelled the development of Platned Mahara; our first-ever standalone testing tool. It wasn’t built overnight (though some nights came pretty close), but it was built on real-world challenges, with feedback from real IFS users, and plenty of developers grumbling about “just one more bug fix.”

And it’s not just us who are excited. There’s already a buzz in the IFS community – the good kind, not the sort that follows a mysterious system crash. We’ve demoed early versions to a few lucky people, and let’s just say the response was somewhere between “wow” and “when can we have it?”

Spoiler: we’re gearing up for a full release.

What’s next?

For now, we’re fine-tuning, gathering feedback, and resisting the urge to give Mahara a personality. Our goal? To make life easier for IFS Cloud users everywhere – and definitely help more testers finish work before the biscuits run out.

A quick chat with a few of the brains behind Mahara

(Conducted during their “short” tea break)

Q: How long did it take to build Mahara?
Dev 1: Define “finished.”
Dev 2: Somewhere between “a couple of sprints” and “a small eternity.”
Dev 3: Time works differently when you’re debugging AI logic at all odd hours.

Q: Did you expect this much excitement about it from world outside?
Dev 4: Honestly? We thought they’d say, “that’s nice” and carry on with their work.
Dev 5: Instead, they wanted to know when they could get their hands on it –immediately.”

Q: Will Mahara ever replace human testers?
Dev 1: No chance.
Dev 2: It’s here to do the boring bits so testers can do the clever bits.
Dev 3: And so we all stop arguing about whether the test failed or just forgot to click ‘Next’.

Ready to meet Mahara?

We’ve built Platned Mahara to be the AI sidekick every IFS Cloud customer deserves; smart, reliable, and surprisingly well-behaved. Whether you’re knee-deep in regression testing or just tired of clicking the same button 97 times a day, Mahara is here to help.

Contact us to get early access and be part of the AI-powered testing revolution.