MOUNT KENYA UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF COMPUTING AND INFORMATICS
DEPARTMENT OF ENTERPRISE COMPUTING
PROJECT TITLE: ONLINE GAS BOOKING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
NAME:
REGISTRATION NUMBER:
SUPERVISOR:
A project submitted to Mt. Kenya University in partial fulfillment of the requirement for
the award of Bachelor in Business Information Technology.
02-Mar-22
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................................... i
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1
1.1 Background Study ............................................................................................................... 1
1.2 Problem Statement .............................................................................................................. 1
1.3Project objectives.................................................................................................................. 2
1.4 Project Scope ....................................................................................................................... 2
1.5 Project justification ............................................................................................................. 3
1.6 Project risk and mitigation ................................................................................................. 3
1.8 Project schedule ................................................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................. 5
2.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 5
2.1 Internet Penetration in Kenya ................................................................................................ 5
2.2 Strategies adopted by liquified petroleum gas (lpg) companies to deal with the challenge of
cross-filling activities in Kenya................................................................................................... 5
2.3 The rise of cooking gas use in Kenya ............................................................................... 6
2.4 The Clean Cooking Problem in Africa .................................................................................. 7
2.4.1 Demand of LPG in Kenya.............................................................................................. 7
2.5 Related Existing systems ....................................................................................................... 9
2.5.1 Smart lpg monitoring system ......................................................................................... 9
2.5.2 A gsm system to detect gas leakage ............................................................................... 9
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................... 11
3.1 Methodology Approach....................................................................................................... 11
3.1.0 Methodologies Introduction ......................................................................................... 11
3.1.1 System Design methodology ....................................................................................... 11
3.1.2 Data Collection Methods ............................................................................................. 14
CHAPTER FOUR: SYSTEM ANALYSIS .................................................................................. 15
4.0 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 15
4.1 Analysis of existing system ................................................................................................. 15
4.2 Proposed system .................................................................................................................. 15
4.3 Requirement analysis .......................................................................................................... 16
4.3.1 Functional requirements............................................................................................... 16
4.3.2 Non-functional requirements ....................................................................................... 16
4.3.3 User characteristics ...................................................................................................... 16
4.3.4 Hardware and Software requirements ......................................................................... 17
4.4 Data Flow Diagram ............................................................................................................. 17
4.4.1 DFD level 0 .................................................................................................................. 17
4.4.2 Level 1 DFD ................................................................................................................ 19
4.4.3 Control flow Diagram .................................................................................................. 20
4.4.4 Use Case Diagram........................................................................................................ 21
4.4.5 System flow chart ........................................................................................................ 21
CHAPTER FIVE: SYSTEM DESIGN ......................................................................................... 23
5.0 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 23
5.1 Input design ......................................................................................................................... 23
5.2 Database design ................................................................................................................... 25
5.2.1 Conceptual database design ......................................................................................... 26
5.2.2 Physical database design .............................................................................................. 27
5.3 Output design ...................................................................................................................... 28
APPENDICES .............................................................................................................................. 29
Appendix 1: Project budget and resources ................................................................................ 29
Appendix 2: Project schedule .................................................................................................... 29
Appendix 3: Project gannt chart ................................................................................................ 30
CHAPTER SIX: SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION ...................................................................... 31
6.0 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 31
6.1 System Coding .................................................................................................................... 31
6.2 System Testing .................................................................................................................... 31
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 34
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I acknowledge the Almighty for providing me with the wisdom, knowledge and strength that
enabled me reach this far. I also acknowledge the wonderful efforts put by my supervisor Mr.
Bernard Chogi who was always present whenever I reached for his guidance and support. I also
appreciate my friends for the motivation, encouragement and support throughout the project
development processes.
i
I hereby declare that this project is based on my original work except for citations and quotations
which have been duly acknowledged. I also declare that that it has not been previously and
concurrently submitted for any other degree or award at Mt. Kenya University.
NAME: VERDIL KAVUKA
Signature: ………………………......………….
Date: ………….........…....……………….
SUPERVISOR
I the undersigned do hereby certify that this is a true report for the project undertaken by the
above-named student under my supervision and that it has been submitted to Mt. Kenya
University with my approval.
NAME: BENARD CHOGI
Signature: ………………………………………Date: …………………..................…………
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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background Study
Mwananchi gas store is a medium sized business that was started in 2012 and conducts its
operations at Nkoroi located in Kajiado County. The business mainly specializes in selling and
distribution of gas cylinders and gas refill. It started its operations as a small business for serving
just a few customers but over the years, the business has grown rapidly due to the increase in
demand and ready market for the services offered by the store given that most of the locals settle
for gas as their main cooking essential. With the ever-increasing population, the demand for the
products is projected to also continue increasing in high levels year in year out.
The goal of this project is to create the system where the customer can easily book their LPG gas
cylinder through online system and the store can track the record of its customer and the delivery
of the cylinders.
The system will help the customers by providing a simple user interactive interface for booking
the gas through online which will save their time and money. It will also help ease the workload
at the store by making the booking process faster and easier to manage.
1.2 Problem Statement
The Mwananchi gas store uses manual system in carrying out and recording its daily transactions.
At the start of the business, manual record keeping was quick, easy and fast as the transactions
were not as many. However, as the business grows manual system has become a very cumbersome
task. In a busy business world, it is important that one can file, find, and store documents in a quick
and effective way. The manual system used by the Mwananchi gas store has become difficult to
handle due to its unfriendly user interaction. This means that the system is prone to errors because
it relies heavily on the actions of the store operator who may sometimes forget to record a
transaction (e.g., customer order and pending payment). The manual system brings along many
other challenges, among them includes:
i.
Difficulty in accessing records; Manual does not guarantee retrieval of records using
specific criteria hence making it difficult to access records from a numerous storage.
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ii.
Data isolation; In manual record keeping, data is scattered in various manual files which
may have different formats, this makes it likely for one to isolate important information.
iii.
Data redundancy; The chances of the same piece of information (e.g., on customer orders)
being duplicated in various records written in different formats.
iv.
Time consuming; it takes a lot of time to search for information from the bulky files.
To overcome these drawbacks, a computerized management system is required.
1.3Project objectives
The main objective of coming up with this project is to develop a system that facilitates the data
storage, data maintenance and its retrieval for Mwananchi gas store in an igneous way.
The specific objectives are:
i.
To develop a system that will manage all the daily transactions in the shop.
ii.
To design a system that will have a user-friendly interface which will serve as a link
between the seller and the customers through facilitating online ordering.
iii.
To develop a system that will considerably save on the space of information through
creating a database that will replace the manual files.
iv.
To design a system will facilitate the addition, deletion, updating of records and
generation of reports.
v.
To develop a system that will enable the Mwananchi Gas store admin/owner get real
store starts through generation of reports that will inform on how sales have been made.
1.4 Project Scope
The scope of this project is to develop an interactive and dynamic website that provides the
customer with an on-the-click functionality to search for their desired product/service and book it
easily and at any time according to the user’s preference and convenience. A mechanism will be
put in place to allow the customers provide their feedback, which in return could be used by the
company for the enhancement of the quality of the products and service provision. The system will
have a central database that will serve as a repository reachable via an interface (admin panel) that
is responsible for receiving and processing customer requests (orders, feedback etc). The system
will help in carrying out the transactions with the help of simple shopping cart and checkout
system. Use of the system will also reduce the manual operation associated with the maintenance
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of the records consisting of the product order details, customer details and payments. However,
the system will not contain information on the products returned by customers or those returned to
the suppliers.
1.5 Project justification
The project will benefit Mwananchi gas store through creating an Online gas booking management
system that will provide secure services to customers, easy to use and provide management with
features of store(products) management. A system will be developed that will enable people book
gas cylinders and gas refill services online at their comfort, easy and securely. For administration,
the system will facilitate management of store products, transactions made and customers’ orders.
The automated system will also increase the business income through increasing the market via
the internet. With all customer orders in one database, the management will be able to make
decisions that are more informed on product stocking because the ordering pattern can be easily
evaluated.
1.6 Project risk and mitigation
The possible risks that are likely to be encountered during the project development include the
following:

Lack of enough funds to purchase the required equipment such as a laptop, for the
system development.

Inaccurate expectations by the potential users who may not understand the product that
is coming on their way.

Resource shortfalls, that is, inability to secure sufficient resources for the project.

Time over-run. Refers to the possibility of the project not being completed on time
Mitigation measures
The mitigation measures for the possible risks mentioned above are:

Formulation of a budget that specified the correct amount of funds required.

Make sure that the potential users understand accurately the type of product to expect.
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
Making sure that all the resources required i.e., hardware and software, are collected
early enough.

Formulate a schedule that is to be followed to ensure the system will be developed
within the given timeline.
1.7 Project budget and resources
Attached in the appendix section
1.8 Project schedule
This defines the time taken to complete each project activity from designing, developing and
installation. This project will take fourteen weeks to be successfully completed
The schedule is attached in the appendix section
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CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction
This chapter will mainly discuss on the studies that were done by previous research of other authors
in the similar area of the present study. Throughout this chapter, there will be comprehensive
discussion on theoretical and practical views of previous studies done in online purchases. This
study combines factors that other studies have done that will influence the consumer’s purchasing
decision from online markets. This section evaluates available literatures with a focus on the
projected demand of liquified petroleum gas in Kenya. The chapter will also provide data on upto-date status of internet penetration in Kenya.
2.1 Internet Penetration in Kenya
In the quarterly sector report released by Communication Authority of Kenya (2015) stated that a
large proportion of the users are accessing the internet using their mobile devices. This has been
as a result of the mobile telecom operators investing in expanding their network and 3G/4G
coverage across the nation. The report continued to explain that the providers of broadband internet
have also grown and expanded their networks in the country through last-mile fiber transmission.
These internet providers have conducted various promotions to create awareness among the people
in the country about their services. As a result of this, the online services in the country are now
easily accessible.
2.2 Strategies adopted by liquified petroleum gas (lpg) companies to deal with the
challenge of cross-filling activities in Kenya
The energy sector is considered a key enabler to achieving vision 2030 and LPG has been seen as
a vital source of energy in response to growing concerns of urban air pollution and greenhouse
gases. LPG is one of the few consumer products sold in a metal cylinder whereas in its distribution,
many parties may handle this cylinder before it reaches the customer. Once the LPG cylinder is
sold the cylinder owner may not have direct control over its subsequent use making it important
to maintain the cylinder integrity throughout the distribution chain as an integral part of customer
safety. However, some unscrupulous players elect to illegally fill the cylinders owned by others
and pay little or no attention at all to the procedures for filling and handling LPG and related
equipment. This exposes the cylinder owner to the risk that the misuse of the cylinder could result
in injury, loss or damage to property and loss of customer business which can expose the cylinder
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owner to severe liability claims, damage the reputation of the owner and that of the industry. A
study conducted by S M Chege (2013) sought to establish challenges, strategies and measures
which have been taken to control cross-filling activities in the LPG market. The study collected
data from the oil marketing companies which deal with LPG refilling in Kenya. The data was
collected using semi-structured questionnaire and was analysed using descriptive statistics. The
study found that LPG companies face challenges such as loss of gas cylinders, cross filling,
inability to trace movement of the cylinders, unfair competition from the illegal refillers who refill
the gas cylinders at cheap prices, high costs of refilling, heavy taxation from the government, and
safety threats to the end-users. Some strategies used to deal with the challenges include: use of
self-sealing valves, RFID technologies to provide cylinder tracking solutions, frequent audits and
monitoring of the licensed LPG dealers, assigning legal responsibility for cylinder maintenance
and clear definition of the owners of the cylinders. Other measures taken to control cross-filling
activities in the oil market are ban of cross-filling of different suppliers, registration of the
companies that refill and inspect gas cylinders and enforcement of the penalties to companies using
unsafe cylinders.
2.3 The rise of cooking gas use in Kenya
According to James Kariuki (Business daily, 2020), the logging moratorium is fuelling cooking
gas uptake, generating a demand-driven enterprise across Kenya that saw 234,400 tonnes of
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) imported in the first nine months of 2019.
This was 27.5 percent more cooking gas imported to meet Kenya’s need for affordable and clean
cooking fuel solution, where the government targets an annual LPG consumption of 10kg to 15kg
per person. This is as opposed to the current two kilogrammes per capita.
Balance of payments statistics indicate 2019 third quarter witnessed the highest importation at
95,289 tonnes that was worth Sh4.6 billion. This compared to a similar period in 2018 when 70,573
tonnes worth Sh4.6 billion, over 50 per cent higher than 2017’s import bill of Sh2.9 billion of
51,735 tonnes.
The logging ban, now in its third year has diminished supply of sawdust, firewood and charcoal to
most households pushing many to turn to other sources of fuels, chiefly LPG, ethanol fuel and
electricity for the high-income earners.
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The sector has witnessed adulteration complaints with LPG brand-owners lamenting loss of market
share to underground dealers who illegally refill branded cylinders passing off the same as genuine
products.
In January 2020, the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) established the
Directorate of Enforcement and Consumer Protection with offices in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu,
Nyeri and Eldoret towns to implement the newly-operationalised regulations. The rules seek to
empower brand owners in controlling branded cylinders trade. The unit will be on the lookout for
illegal gas refilling dens, monitor transportation of filled and empty cylinders as well as conduct
impromptu raids on LPG retail outlets to ascertain that only genuinely filled LPG cylinders are on
sale.
2.4 The Clean Cooking Problem in Africa
A report by the Global Lpg Partnership (2019) indicates that 2.8 billion people across the
developing world have no access to clean, modern energy for their main energy-consuming task:
cooking. They rely instead on solid fuels like wood and charcoal, or on kerosene. Their reliance
on solid fuels causes millions of premature deaths each year, causes large-scale loss of health,
significantly harms forests, retards economic development and contributes to climate change.
Addressing this 2.8-billion-person challenge became one of the pillars of United Nations
Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7). It is also a stated policy priority of the governments of
over 20 low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), together representing one quarter of the
world’s population.
The International Energy Agency, in its World Energy Outlook 2017, reported that if universal
energy access for cooking is to be achieved by 2030, it will be achieved for 1.4 billion of these 2.8
billion persons through access to, and use of, LPG. That is, LPG would become the solution to the
Clean Cooking Problem for, potentially, half the world, over at least the next 12 years.
2.4.1 Demand of LPG in Kenya
According to the A report by the Global Lpg Partnership (2019), a significant portion of the LPG
demand quantity in Kenya is supply-constrained by an insufficient inventory of safely circulating
cylinders. This is true of many Sub-Saharan African LPG markets which have not yet reached a
mature and sustainable stage. This indicates that LPG adoption can be expanded significantly by
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increasing LPG availability to new consumers. Additional measures, such as improved
affordability and consumer education, would have additive effects on both adoption and usage.
The demand potential in Kenya among candidate households could reach between 38-41% of all
households by 2030, if supply were unconstrained and essential market reforms, investments and
interventions made.
An examination of fuel costs and consumption data in representative locations throughout Kenya
shows that LPG competes favourably on a cost-per-meal basis with charcoal, kerosene and
purchased firewood, on average.
Kenya has been one of the world’s most unruly LPG markets for much of the 2010s. The word
“unruly” is used because what has characterized Kenya’s LPG market during most of this decade
is lack of enforcement of essential rules against market-destructive competitive behaviours by bad
actors. When combined with certain consumer-and competition-oriented changes to the LPG
market rules dating from 2009, which were intended to mitigate the impact of LPG shortages on
consumers but had severe unintended consequences, Kenya’s LPG ecosystem began to be invaded
by parasitic enterprises. A large black and grey market for cylinder refiling developed. The
parasites (also referred to as pirates) hijacked a portion of the investments and assets of legitimate
companies and thereby diverted an increasingly large portion of legitimate companies’ distribution
networks and cylinder refilling income to themselves. A few legitimate companies went so far as
to copy some of the parasites’ modalities, becoming hybrid host/parasite enterprises.
Adoption of LPG by Kenyan consumers is also influenced meaningfully, especially in the middleincome quintile, by reduction to the upfront cost of the LPG equipment. Successful implementation
of pro-poor interventions, such as the subsidized distribution of LPG equipment by the Mwananchi
Gas Project can unlock additional LPG demand.
Moreover, LPG is chosen by consumers not only on the basis of cost, but also on the basis of
preferences. Increase in preference for LPG would lead to a greater and faster adoption and greater
consumption in a reformed market with adequately expanded supply.
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2.5 Related Existing systems
There is a rapid development in technology which influencing the human life in several aspects
due to rapid development in different fields but we still need to adopt that technology such that we
can make human life easier. In our Country it is not possible to supply LPG through Pipes to each
and every home as production of LPG is not that vast. At present the existing systems though
developed to upgrade the operations, are limited to the buildings/stores where they have been
deployed. The developed systems focus on improving the customer response time via calls but do
not take care of the booking and record storage processes.
2.5.1 Smart lpg monitoring system
As documented by Jayesh Gupta, Samadhan Rajgire, Abhijeet Patil, Tejashree Kadus, 2020,
describing Smart LPG Monitoring System using IOT in International Journal OF Engineering
Research and Technology (IJERT) Volume 09, Issue 04 (April 2020), there is a system that has
been developed to continuously monitor the leakage of LPG gas and alerts the user when
temperature goes above threshold detects fire and takes necessary actions like opening window,
turning on exhaust fan.
Merits of the smart lpg monitoring system

Help customers to upgrade their safety from reputed Accidents.

Measure the gas present in the cylinder when weight of the cylinder is below the particular
level.

Prevent damage or explosion of LPG.
Demerits of the smart lpg monitoring system

High implementation

and maintenance cost

May be misused

May consume time
2.5.2 A gsm system to detect gas leakage
A publication in the International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer and Communication
Engineering (2014) discusses a gsm system to detect gas leakage. In this system, the LPG leakage
9
is detected through the sensor and information is sent to the user by SMS & simultaneously alerts
the customer using a GSM module. The additional advantage of the system is that it continuously
monitors the level of the LPG present in the cylinder using weight sensor and automatically books
the cylinder using a GSM model.
This model contains GSM which is an old technique used & has a bit of lack of awareness for the
uneducated people.
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CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Methodology Approach
3.1.0 Methodologies Introduction
This chapter clearly defines the research methods that will be used in the project. It explains how
the necessary data and information to address the project objectives will be collected, presented
and analysed. Reasons and justifications for choosing the various equipment, data sources and data
collection techniques are also given.
3.1.1 System Design methodology
In this project, the waterfall design model will be used. It is very simple to understand and use. In
a waterfall model, each phase must be completed before the next phase can begin and there is no
overlapping in the phases.
The Waterfall Model
The waterfall model is a sequential design process in which progress is seen as flowing steadily
downwards (like a waterfall) through the phases of Conception, Initiation, Analysis, Design,
Construction, Testing, Production/Implementation, and Maintenance.
In “The Waterfall” approach, the whole process of software development is divided into separate
phases. The outcome of one phase acts as the input for the next phase sequentially. This means
that any phase in the development process begins only if the previous phase is complete.
All the phases are cascaded to each other in which progress is seen as flowing steadily downwards
(like a waterfall) through the phases. The next phase is started only after the defined set of goals
are achieved for previous phase and it is signed off,
The following illustration is a representation of the different phases of the Waterfall Model that
will be followed during the system design.
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Figure 3.1: the waterfall model
The sequential phases in Waterfall model are −

Requirement Gathering and analysis − All possible requirements of the gas booking
management system to be developed will be captured in this phase and documented in a
requirement specification document.

System Design − the requirement specifications from first phase will be studied in this
phase and the system design will then be prepared.

Implementation − with inputs from the system design, the system will first be developed
in small programs called units, which will be integrated in the next phase.

Integration and Testing − All the units to be developed in the implementation phase will
then be integrated into a system after testing of each unit. After integration of the entire
system, it will be tested for any faults and failures.

Deployment of system − Once the functional and non-functional testing are done, the
product will be deployed for use.
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
Maintenance − Maintenance will be done to fix any issues that will arise when using the
system.
Waterfall Model - Advantages
The advantages of waterfall development are that it allows for departmentalization and control. A
schedule can be set with deadlines for each stage of development and a product can proceed
through the development process model by following the phases one by one.
Some of the major advantages of the Waterfall Model are as follows:
 Simple and easy to understand and use
 Easy to manage due to the rigidity of the model. Each phase has specific deliverables and
a review process.
 Phases are processed and completed one at a time.
 Works well for smaller projects where requirements are well defined.
 Clearly defined stages.
 Well understood milestones.
 Easy to arrange tasks.
 Process and results are documented.
Waterfall Model - Disadvantages
The disadvantage of waterfall development is that it does not allow much reflection or revision.
Once an application is in the testing stage, it is very difficult to go back and change something that
was not well documented or thought upon in the concept stage.
 The major disadvantages of the Waterfall Model are as follows −
 No working software is produced until late during the life cycle.
 High amounts of risk and uncertainty.
 Not a good model for complex and object-oriented projects.
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 Poor model for long and ongoing projects.
 Not suitable for the projects where requirements are at a moderate to high risk of changing.
Therefore, risk and uncertainty are high with this process model.
 It is difficult to measure progress within stages.
 Cannot accommodate changing requirements.
 Adjusting scope during the life cycle can end a project.
 Integration is done as a "big-bang at the very end, which doesn't allow identifying any
technological or business bottleneck or challenges early.
3.1.2 Data Collection Methods
a) Observation
This involves direct observation of the current existing mechanism used by Mwananchi gas store
for information management; identify its weaknesses and the areas that need improvement. This
facilitates gathering of first-hand information that plays a huge role in the system development.
b) Use of Questionnaires
This involves formulating and printing of questions that will be distributed to several actors who
include a few customers and those interested in buying and refilling gas from the store. Their
feedback will form the basis of what should be included in the system to be developed.
c) Interviews
This involves conversing with the user (store operator) and several customers by asking them
questions to find out their opinions on the current systems and establish the areas that need
enhancements to develop a system that will meet the users’ expectations.
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CHAPTER FOUR: SYSTEM ANALYSIS
4.0 Introduction
System analysis is a process of gathering and interpreting facts, diagnosing problems and the
information about the existing system to recommend improvements. System analysis uses a
problem-solving technique that decomposes a system into its component piece for studying how
well that part works and interacts to accomplish the system objective. System analysis is done to
improve the system performance by monitoring it and obtaining the best throughput possible from
it.
4.1 Analysis of existing system
The present scenario for buying/booking gas from Mwananchi gas store is to visit the store and
purchase manually, from the available product list one needs to choose the item he or she wants.
This system is not much user friendly as one needs to go to the store physically and then select
items only from the available list. So mostly, it is difficult to get the product as per the customers’
desire. Description about the products are less available and are mostly verbal. For this type of
purchasing, one needs to have ample amount of free time to be able to pick out the best from the
available products.
The gas store currently maintains purchase, sales and inventory records manually. The manual
system faces challenges such as; preparation of the bills when the items are sold on cash or credit
is tedious, a challenge in editing of the stock and rate of particular item, a challenge in addition of
new item into the existing list of items with its description, a challenge in preparation of the reports,
large paperwork, requires more manpower and also security of the stored information is
compromised among many other challenges.
4.2 Proposed system
The aim of the proposed system is to develop a system of improved facilities. It is projected to
overcome the challenges of the existing system. In the proposed system, customers need not to go
to the store for purchasing the products. He/she can order the gas product he/she wishes to buy
with this system. The store owner will be the admin of the system. The system also endorses a
home delivery for delivering the purchased products hence the store will only need to hire delivery
work force. The system will help reduce the time taken to complete the purchasing process; save
on storage space through creation of database that will replace the large paper work and improve
on data security as only authorized users will have access to the admin panel who will need to
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login to the system with a verified password. The system will also generate reports to aid the store
owner in decision making.
4.3 Requirement analysis
Requirement analysis is the process of determining user expectations. These features, called
requirements, must be quantifiable, relevant and detailed. It involved defining customer needs and
objectives in the context of planned customer use, environments and identified system
characteristics to determine requirements for system functions. It was conducted to optimize
performance requirements for identified functions and to verify that the synthesized solutions can
satisfy customer requirements.
4.3.1 Functional requirements
These are the core tasks that the system should achieve. They include:
a. The system should capture the owner’s details and store in the database.
b. The system should generate reports.
4.3.2 Non-functional requirements
These are components of the system that are not required to accomplish the core task. They
include:
a. Security. The system needs to be secure to keep confidential data from unauthorised
access
b. The system should verify the login details and alert the user in case of any issues.
c. The system should have a user-friendly interface.
d. The system should be fast.
e. Multiple users should be able to access the system simultaneously.
4.3.3 User characteristics
There will be mainly three users in this system. First is the admin, the second one is registered user
and third one is guest.
Admin will maintain the whole application. In this system the role of manager will be controlling
and checking the application. The report formatting and controlling of each and every part of the
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system will be done by him. The admin will be superior in this system. Admin will get a superior
password.
Registered user is core part of this successful system. It is the user which registers their account
via this system.
4.3.4 Hardware and Software requirements
The minimum hardware and software requirements of the system are;
 Browser: chrome, internet explorer/Firefox
 Server: wamp/xamp
 Back end: Mysql, php
 Front end: html, css
 Processor: 1.8 GHZ processor speed and above
 Memory: 2GB RAM or more
4.4 Data Flow Diagram
Data Flow Diagrams show the flow of data from external entities into the system, and from one
process to another within the system. They are used to illustrate how data is processed by a system
in terms of inputs and outputs. They demonstrate the flow of information in the system. The
diagrams help explain how data moves through the system in a graphical top-down approach.
System’s components, processes and the interfaces between them are also shown.
4.4.1 DFD level 0
It is a diagram giving an entire system’s data flows and processing with a single process (circle).
It does not go into details as marking all the processes. The purpose is to express the system scope
at a high level as well as to prevent users from deep down into complex details.
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Customer
Mwananchi
gas booking
system
Enquire
order
Gas store
Response
Management Reports
Administrator
Figure 4.1: A data flow diagram showing the basic operations of the system
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4.4.2 Level 1 DFD
Level 1 DFD breaks down the main process into subprocesses that can then be seen on a deeper
level. Also, level 1 DFD contains data stores that are used by the main process.
Order
Customer
Bill
Mwananchi
gas booking
system
Order In
Inventory details
Gas store
order
Order
Inventory
Inventory details
Orders
Inventory details
Generate
reports
Reports
Manager
Figure 4.2: A level one data flow diagram showing the operations of the system
19
4.4.3 Control flow Diagram
A Control Flow Diagram (CFD) is the graphical representation of control flow or computation
during the execution of programs or applications. A control flow diagram helps us understand the
detail of a process. It shows us where control starts and ends and where it may branch off in another
direction, given certain situations.
Figure 4.3: The system control flow diagram
20
4.4.4 Use Case Diagram
A use case diagram summarizes the details of the system's users (also known as actors) and their
interactions with the system.
Place order
Customer
Register
Login
Admin
Check orders/
update
Add item
Figure 4.4: A use case diagram depicting how admin and customer will be interacting with the
system.
4.4.5 System flow chart
The system flow diagram is a visual representation of all processed in sequential order.
The System flow chart diagram is a graphical representation of the relation between all the major
parts or step of the system.
21
Start
Admin
Customer/user
Home screen
Login screen
Database
Is username
and
password
ok?
Login screen
Is username
and
password
ok?
Customer screen
Admin dashboard
End
Figure 4.5: system flow chart
22
CHAPTER FIVE: SYSTEM DESIGN
5.0 Introduction
System design is the process of defining the architecture components, modules, interfaces and
data for a system to satisfy specified requirements.
It entails transforming the software requirements into structural design that demonstrates its toplevel structure and identifies the software components and developing a detailed design for each
software component.
5.1 Input design
The input design shows the elements that will be used in capturing data into the system. This is
used to facilitate the entry of data into the system. This involves the selection of the best strategy
for getting data into the system at the right time accurately. Online cereals management system
has the following input forms:

Login form: for allowing registered users to login onto the system

Registration form: for registration of new users.

Admin dashboard form: it is the working area of the system administrator.

Homepage: it is the main screen for displaying products stored in the database.
Login form
Login
Email
Password
Login
cancel
Figure 5.1: Login form
23
Home page
Your Cart
My account Wish list My cart Checkout login
Mwananchi Gas
Track order
Search here….
Tabs; home, categories
products
Footer
Figure 5.2: Homepage
24
Cart
Registration Page
First name
Last name
Email
Password
Re-type password
Signup
cancel
Figure 5.3: Registration page
5.2 Database design
Data dictionary
It defines the basic organisation of a database in Database management systems. It contains all
data definitions for cross-referencing and for managing and controlling access to the information
repository database. It contains list of all files in the database, names and types of each field and
the number of records in each file. The data dictionary is hidden from the users to prevent them
from interfering with its contents.
25
Data dictionaries do not contain any actual data from the database; it is only used for book keeping
information for managing the database. However, without a data dictionary a database
management system cannot access data from the database store.
5.2.1 Conceptual database design
Table 4: customer's table
Orders table
User_id
order_id
First name
user_id
Last_name
product_id
Email
ref_id
Password
P_status
Mobile
Status
Address
product_id
Product_cat
Product_brand
Categories table
Product_title
cat_id
Product_price
cat_title
Product_desc
Product_image
Products table
Product_keywords
26
brand_id
brand_title
Brands table
5.2.2 Physical database design
Physical database design is the process of transforming a data model into the physical data
structure of a particular database management system (DBMS).
Login Table
Field
Type
Null Default Comments
Username Varchar (255) No
None
Password
None
Varchar (255) No
Table 5.1: Login table
Registration Table
Field
Type
Null Default Comments
Name
Varchar (255) No
None
Address
Varchar (255) No
None
Password Varchar (255) No
None
Phone
Varchar (255) No
None
Zip code
Varchar (255) No
None
table 5.2: Registration table
Admin login table
Field
Type
Null Default Comments
Username Varchar (255) No
None
Password
None
Varchar (255) No
Figure 5.3: Admin login table
27
Product Table
Field
Type
Null Default Comments
Product_Id
Varchar (255) No
None
Brand/owner Varchar (255) No
None
Price
Varchar (255) No
None
Size
Varchar (255) No
None
Table 5.4: product table
5.3 Output design
The output design is the direct interaction between the user and the system. Efficient and
intelligible output design improves the system interaction with the user. Allowing the user to view
the sample screen is important because the user is the ultimate determinant of the quality of output.
Report Design
Date picker
from: …... To: …….
Transaction date product OP Price Quantity Total amount
Total
Figure 5.5: Report design
0
0
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APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Project budget and resources
ITEMS
QUANTITY
PRICE(Ksh)
Laptop
1
25000
1
5000
Processor: dual core
3GB RAM
500 HDD
External Backup(disk)500GB
Research costs
3000
Printing and Binding
300
Stationary
3000
Transport
5000
Total
41300
Appendix Table 1: project budget and resources
Appendix 2: Project schedule
ACTIVITY NO.
ACTIVITY
TIME(WEEKS)
PREDECESSOR
1.
Identify the necessary requirements
1
_
2.
Collection of requirements
2
1
3.
System Design
3
2
4.
System Implementation
3
3
5.
System integration
2
3,4
6.
System Testing
1
5
7.
System Installation/Deployment
2
5,6
Appendix table 2: project schedule
29
Appendix 3: Project gannt chart
THE GANNT CHART FOR THIS PROJECT IS AS FOLLOWS:
WEEKS
1
2
3
4
5
6
ACTIVITIES
Requirement
identification
Requirement
collection
System design
System
implementation
System
integration
System testing
System
installation
Documentation
Appendix table 3: project gannt chart
30
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
CHAPTER SIX: SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION
6.0 Introduction
Systems implementation is the process of; defining how the information system should be built
(i.e. physical system design), ensuring that the information system is operational and
ensuring that the information system meets quality standard (i.e., quality assurance). After
designing the system, it was necessary to put all the hardware and software together so to create
the new system. The system implementation process was performed in stages as follows;
6.1 System Coding
Computer code or program code refers to the set of instructions written by a programmer in
programming. Coding is the implementation of the actual system using a programming language.
The system was developed using HTML, PHP, MySQL and CSS. The system was connected to
Mysql Database through a data environment.
6.2 System Testing
Testing is the process of evaluating the system and its components to establish whether it
satisfies the specified requirements or not. The system was executed to identify any gaps, errors
or any missing requirements desired.
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APPENDIX
Sample codes
Login
<?php
require_once ("include/initialize.php");
if (@$_GET['page'] <= 2 or @$_GET['page'] > 5) {
# code...
// unset($_SESSION['PRODUCTID']);
// // unset($_SESSION['QTY']);
// // unset($_SESSION['TOTAL']);
}
if(isset($_POST['sidebarLogin'])){
$email = trim($_POST['U_USERNAME']);
$upass = trim($_POST['U_PASS']);
$h_upass = sha1($upass);
if ($email == '' OR $upass == '') {
message("Invalid Username and Password!", "error");
redirect(web_root."index.php");
} else {
$cus = new Customer();
$cusres = $cus::cusAuthentication($email,$h_upass);
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if ($cusres==true){
redirect(web_root."index.php?q=profile");
}else{
message("Invalid Username and Password! Please contact administrator", "error");
redirect(web_root."index.php");
}
}
}
if(isset($_POST['modalLogin'])){
$email = trim($_POST['U_USERNAME']);
$upass = trim($_POST['U_PASS']);
$h_upass = sha1($upass);
if ($email == '' OR $upass == '') {
message("Invalid Username and Password!", "error");
redirect(web_root."index.php?page=6");
} else {
$cus = new Customer();
$cusres = $cus::cusAuthentication($email,$h_upass);
if ($cusres==true){
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if($_POST['proid']==''){
redirect(web_root."index.php?q=orderdetails");
}else{
$proid = $_POST['proid'];
$id = mysql_insert_id();
$query ="INSERT INTO `tblwishlist` (`PROID`, `CUSID`, `WISHDATE`,
`WISHSTATS`) VALUES ('". $proid."','".$_SESSION['CUSID']."','".DATE('Y-m-d')."',0)";
mysql_query($query) or die(mysql_error());
redirect(web_root."index.php?q=profile");
}
}else{
message("Invalid Username and Password! Please contact administrator", "error");
redirect(web_root."index.php");
}
}
}
?>
REFERENCES
1. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/markets/market-news/cooking-gas-use-risesnearly-one-third-on-sustained-logging-ban-2276054.
34
2. http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/handle/11295/60463.
3. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology/archives/V5/i11/IRJETV5I11214.pdf.
4. https://ijesc.org/upload/A Review on Automatic LPG Cylinder Booking and Leakage
Detection using Arduino UNO.pdf.
5. The global lpg partnership/Clean cooking for Africa program/Kenya national assessment
(2019).
6. Report released by Communication Authority of Kenya on the use of internet in Kenya,
(2015)
7. Internet penetration in Kenya: - from the quarterly sector report released by
Communication Authority of Kenya (2015)
8. Strategies adopted by liquified petroleum gas (lpg) companies to deal with the challenge
of cross-filling activities in Kenya: - from a study conducted by S M Chege (2013)
9. The rise of cooking gas use in Kenya: - from a report by James Kariuki (Business daily,
2020)
10. International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer and Communication Engineering
(2014): A gsm gas leakage detection system.
35