<\/p>\n
Eskom\u2019s what?<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the question many South Africans raised when two bright sparks created the famed smartphone app, EskomSePush<\/em>.<\/p>\n The founders of the app Dan Southwood-Wells, 37, and Herman Maritz, 35, never imagined that the service would still be in use and even more popular almost a decade later. They launched the app in 2014.<\/p>\n The duo, who hail from Cape Town, recently reached a milestone when they clocked the 5 million download mark.<\/p>\n EskomSePush<\/em> is a smartphone app used by South Africans to receive push notifications when load shedding is implemented, and when they will be without power.<\/p>\n So how did EskomSePush <\/em> come to fruition? <\/strong><\/p>\n Both Wells and Maritz used to work at a company that builds apps for banks.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a lot of conference calls, we discussed \u2018push notifications\u2019 (the technology that sends notifications from apps) and how these notifications can be used to update banking customers,\u201d Maritz told Weekend Argus<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cSome of these meetings had folks with raw Afrikaans accents and the pronunciation of the word \u2018Push\u2019 always made our day.\u201c<\/p>\n \u201cThe mute button on the conference equipment is very helpful for politely having a chuckle. But simply put; It\u2019s push notifications for Eskom\u2019s load shedding, EskomSePush<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Just like many South Africans, Wells and Maritz wanted to know when load shedding was happening so that \u201cwe could plan around it over our December holidays\u201d. <\/p>\n \u201cLoad shedding schedules are hard to understand. We wanted it to be simple,\u201d Maritz said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe started to send notifications to ourselves, when load shedding is happening, so we know if we need to stay a bit longer in the office.\u201d<\/p>\n This then grew to their friends and family. <\/p>\n \u201cThat was the minimum viable product (MVP) \u2026 We then spent another weekend writing the app and from that the app grew.\u201d<\/p>\n The duo are mulling to expand their platform.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve learned with EskomSePush that information is power,\u201d said Maritz.<\/p>\n \u201cWe all want to know what\u2019s going on around us. Information gives us peace of mind, providing a sense of assurance in an increasingly chaotic world.<\/p>\n \u201cWith EskomSePush\u2019s new AskMyStreet, anyone can ask questions and get answers to hyper-local problems they face. Current categories: electricity, water, roads, fires, pets, internet issues and safety.\u201d<\/p>\n With the help of their app\u2019s community, they are informing people about issues in their area. <\/p>\n \u201cKeeping up with what\u2019s happening nearby has never been easier,\u201d Maritz said. <\/p>\n According to Maritz, the app is a self-funded project. <\/p>\n They provide a business application programming interface (API) that is currently used by mobile networks and large corporations. <\/p>\n \u201cIt is effectively being used to provide information to contact centres, manage faults and status across dispersed networks, and visualise impact on operations,\u201d Maritz said. <\/p>\n \u201cOne customer is even using it to manage planning around outages for their remote workforce! It\u2019s all about gaining efficiency, and handling the impact of loadshedding effectively.\u201d<\/p>\n What was once a side-hustle for the duo is now a full time job. <\/p>\n \u201cThis year both Dan and I started to work full-time on EskomSePush<\/em> and related projects,\u201d Maritz said.<\/p>\n \u201cDan became a father last week, that\u2019s another full time gig.\u201d<\/p>\n