How Cadent Gas found a strategic tech partner for their operational needs

About

Cadent Gas is the UK's largest gas distribution network, serving 11 million homes and 40,000 businesses from Manchester to London. Cadent has positioned the UK as a global thought leader in the green gas economy thanks to their advanced technology and a forward-thinking approach.

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Challenge

Transforming multi-domain operations to boost efficiency and advance net-zero goals

Cadent Gas operates at the heart of the nation's daily life, delivering energy to millions of homes and businesses across the UK. For Director of Operational Performance Ian Dennis, sustaining this operational excellence in the face of shifting sector requirements called for strategic transformation.

For years, critical processes like gas escape management, customer communications, and contractor procurement relied on manual coordination and cross-referencing data across systems. While they kept Cadent running reliably, they tied up time and resources that could be spent on higher-value work, like supplier negotiations and proactive asset management.

This friction extended beyond operational efficiency. As the UK accelerates toward net-zero emissions by 2050, energy providers like Cadent face mounting expectations from regulators and investors to modernize, streamline workflows, and position themselves for the integration of green gas such as Biomethane. Ian and his team needed to meet these demands, all while boosting resilience and agility as the sector rapidly evolved.

But building these solutions internally would demand continuous work across operations and IT. They'd need to handle design, development, testing, and maintenance — all while managing critical infrastructure for millions of homes. An external software expert would deliver solutions and keep the team focused on their operational transformation. So Ian began searching for a technology partner.

Even more important than optimizing processes and freeing up capacity, the right partner would deploy software safely, without compromising service continuity. For providers in critical industries, service disruptions are simply not an option. Any interruption could affect energy supply and even escalate into broader outages or safety hazards.

Over the years, he had explored a range of technology providers. He found that large, traditional software consultancies required lengthy explanations and lacked genuine innovation. And smaller, more niche partners, though more responsive, couldn't always fully address Cadent's enterprise-grade systems and shifted the support burden to internal teams instead. It was clear: only truly tailored solutions would meet the company's needs.

When Cadent found Cogna, something clicked. With their AI-powered software factory, the Cogna team specializes in building custom, integrated solutions for operational leaders in mission-critical industries — exactly what Ian's team needed. Partnering with them was a no-brainer.

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"We wanted to optimize operations across the board. This strategy would free up resources, elevate our service, and help us lead the sector's transition to net-zero with confidence."

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Solution

A reliable partner that enhances operational performance with custom, AI-powered solutions

From the start, working with Cogna offered a fresh approach. The process felt more like an ongoing conversation than a rigid project brief. Ian and his team could actually see new ideas turning into real results, which made everyone eager to get involved.

By embedding themselves directly with those closest to Cadent's front-line operations, Cogna understood the nuances of core workflows, like response coordination, contractor bid management, and customer communications. Using this input, Cogna's AI build engine proposed tailored solutions — and when Ian and his team gave the green light, it delivered purpose-built, AI-powered software in just a few weeks.

Because every application was co-designed with Cadent's teams, it reflects how they actually work, fitting within existing technology to avoid the risk of downtime or disruption. That way, teams can put it into use immediately without pushback or a steep learning curve.

Now, Cadent has a portfolio of AI-powered applications, each addressing an essential operational need. For instance, their gas escape management system efficiently captures context from field supervisors and combines it with data from Cadent's systems of record via APIs. This setup makes it easy to track incidents and stay compliant with targets. As a result, Ian and his team reduce the tedious admin and free up time for field operations management.

By unifying contractor data, Cogna also delivers detailed tender analyses and regional rates. With data-driven recommendations for the most appropriate supplier option, Cadent identifies cost-saving opportunities, securing faster negotiations with suppliers while maintaining quality standards.

But what truly impressed Ian and his team was the way Cogna transformed Cadent's customer communication processes amid major contract turnover. Rather than managing a patchwork of manual workflows, Cadent now uses a fully integrated suite of tools to support the customer journey — something that once seemed impossible at their scale.

At the heart of this software hub is Cadent's Lettering App. The platform schedules, drafts, and sends required letters before network replacement begins, minimizing the risk of missed deadlines and simultaneously creating capacity for field operations. At every step, built-in validation catches potential gaps, so Cadent's team meets customer needs without skipping a beat.

Cogna has also equipped Cadent with a novel Incident Response Management System. Streamlined equipment distribution ensures every vulnerable household gets hotplates, temporary heating, and welfare checks exactly when it needs them. In the meantime, automated public updates keep everyone informed as events unfold, preserving safety and public confidence. With these tools, Cadent didn't just enhance core processes — it elevated customer communications from an operational task to a competitive advantage.

These new capabilities have enabled Cadent to move toward more proactive operations. For example, supervisors have the tools to review failure data and plan an appropriate response. This shift has freed up time and resources for tomorrow's strategic imperatives. This demonstrates to stakeholders that the company is well-positioned to deliver for their customers. And their leaner workflows highlight the operational discipline regulators consider when evaluating funding decisions and performance compliance.

Behind this all is Cogna's comprehensive, hands-on support. To prevent disruptions, the team continuously tracks application usage to catch potential issues. If a user has a question or wants to provide feedback, they message Cogna directly through the app and receive a quick response. In turn, Cadent's operations run smoothly with minimal internal lift.

Because the Cogna team is deeply involved in Cadent's operations, they ship feature enhancements within days — and proactively surface their own opportunities for platform optimization. This dynamic ensures Cadent's toolkit evolves quickly and easily beyond its original scope as needs change.

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"Cogna gave us something that others had struggled to deliver — custom applications that solve complex, multi-faceted operational challenges."

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Results

Cadent Gas scales operational transformation with 15 purpose-built applications from Cogna

In 18 months with Cogna, Cadent transformed their workflows into seamless, automated systems. They now have a suite of solutions tailored to their operational reality, each elevating a core function —  from field operations to customer communications to supplier management.

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• Fully integrated suite of tools for the customer journey
• Real-time, customer-level visibility into field operations
• Instant customer updates  
• Real time supplier negotiations supported by automated tender analysis
• Timely management information to support decision making in the field
  
  

Beyond deploying AI-powered tools, Cogna has become a true extension of Cadent's team. The partnership has strong momentum — as soon as one application is shipped, Cadent is already scoping the next opportunity. And with its state-of-the-art technology, Cogna continues to deliver.

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"Cogna has become a true partner. Their team is now part of internal conversations because they contribute such valuable insights to our digital transformation journey."