What Centro de Ensayos de Software does

Centro de Ensayos de Software (CES) is a Uruguayan foundation (Fundación Centro de Ensayos de Software) founded in 2004 in Montevideo as a joint initiative between the Facultad de Ingeniería of Universidad de la República (via Fundación Julio Ricaldoni) and the Cámara Uruguaya de Tecnologías de la Información (CUTI). The organization operates as a non-profit dedicated exclusively to software testing services, professional training, and consulting, serving enterprise clients in banking, telecommunications, government, utilities, and IT sectors across Uruguay, plus a regional reach into Latin America through its community and training programs.

CES operates three interlocking business lines. Its services business provides functional testing, automation, performance testing, compliance testing, and security testing to enterprise and government clients; recent partnership with Guayoyo adds cybersecurity specialization. Its education business delivers the three-level Carrera de Testing (Diploma Tester de Software, Diploma Tester Profesional de Software, Diploma Gerencia de Calidad y Testing de Software), short courses on web services, security, usability, accessibility, databases, agile methodologies, DevSecOps, mobile automation, and AI in testing, plus a dedicated corporate training line. All courses carry academic endorsement from Universidad de la República's Permanent Education Program and are delivered via the Moodle-based Aula Virtual platform, supplemented by a training site in Paysandú through the creCÉS social program (funded partly by Inefop). CES also organizes TestingUy, Latin America's largest software testing conference, since 2014, in partnership with QAlified.

Commercial mechanics combine four revenue streams: professional services for testing engagements, subscription/recurring online training enrollment, customized corporate training, and consulting. Pricing is not publicly disclosed but scholarship programs (becas creCES) offer up to 70-100% subsidies funded by sponsors (Bantotal, CPA Ferrere, Pérez Alfaro & Asociados). Customer concentration is dispersed across 20+ named enterprise and government logos in Uruguay, including BBVA, HSBC, Banco Central del Uruguay, BROU, Banco Hipotecario, Banco de Seguros del Estado, ANTEL, UTE, Corte Electoral, AGESIC, LACNIC, and UKG. The organization reports over 1,500 people trained, 1,000+ Testing Career graduates, and 100+ executed projects across 22+ years of continuous operation.

Name

Centro de Ensayos de Software

Legal name

Fundación Centro de Ensayos de Software

Website

https://ces.com.uy

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Centro de Ensayos de Software is a Uruguayan foundation, founded 2004, providing software testing services, corporate training, and consulting to enterprise and government clients in Uruguay and Latin America, anchored by its three-level Testing Career program and the TestingUy conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Montevideo

HQ country

Uruguay

HQ region

Latin America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Testing Services: Provides comprehensive testing services including functional testing, automation, performance testing, compliance testing, and security testing to public and private sector clients. Services are defined and executed according to client objectives.
2. Online Training and Education: Offers online courses, diplomas, and specializations in software testing through their Carrera de Testing program. Revenue generated from course enrollments and corporate training.
3. Corporate Training: Customized workshops, courses, and seminars adapted to specific enterprise needs, delivered in-company.
4. Consulting Services: Customized solutions for enterprises based on processes and methodologies developed by the CES team, defined collaboratively with each client.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Centro de Ensayos de Software (CES) is a Uruguayan foundation dedicated exclusively to software testing. It sells professional testing services (functional, automation, performance, compliance, security), customized consulting, and a three-level Testing Career diploma program plus modular specializations and short courses, all backed by academic endorsement from the Universidad de la República. It also organizes TestingUy, the largest software testing event in Latin America since 2014.

Product overview

Centro de Ensayos de Software (CES) offers a comprehensive portfolio centered on software testing services, education, and consulting. The core service offerings include Functional Testing, Functional Testing Automation, Performance Testing, Compliance Testing, and Security Testing. The education division provides a three-level Testing Career (Carrera de Testing) through diplomas: Diploma Tester de Software (foundational), Diploma Tester Profesional de Software (intermediate), and Diploma Gerencia de Calidad y Testing de Software (advanced). Short courses and specializations in areas such as Web Services Testing, Security Testing, Usability Testing, Accessibility Testing, Database Testing, Code Quality, Agile Testing, DevSecOps, Mobile Automation, and AI in Testing complement the curriculum. Consulting services deliver customized solutions, while corporate training offers tailored enterprise programs. The organization also runs TestingUy, Latin America's largest testing conference, and the creCÉS social program with scholarship opportunities. All educational offerings integrate with the Aula Virtual (Moodle) platform and carry academic endorsement from Universidad de la República's Facultad de Ingeniería.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Testing Funcional Manual functional testing service that investigates software products to provide quality information, enabling informed decision-making and value addition to software. Sold to enterprise clients in banking, government, telecommunications, and technology sectors.
• Automatización del Testing Funcional Automated functional testing service that uses tools and frameworks to execute test scripts automatically, improving efficiency and coverage. Sold to enterprise clients seeking higher test throughput and regression coverage.
• Testing de Performance Performance testing service that measures system behavior under load, evaluating speed, stability, and scalability metrics. Sold to enterprise clients running critical or high-traffic applications.
• Testing de Conformidad Compliance testing service that verifies software meets specified standards, regulations, and requirements. Sold to enterprise clients operating in regulated industries.
• Testing de Seguridad Security testing service that identifies vulnerabilities and assesses risks in software systems, including penetration testing and security audits. Sold to enterprise clients in financial services, government, and technology sectors.
• Consultoría en Testing Customized consulting services providing solutions defined in conjunction with each client, covering testing strategy, methodology definition, and process improvement. Sold to enterprise clients seeking to professionalize their internal QA function.
• Capacitación para Empresas Customized corporate training services offering workshops, courses, and seminars tailored to specific enterprise needs, delivered in-person or online. Sold to enterprise clients to upskill internal QA teams.
• Carrera de Testing (Testing Career) - Diploma Tester de Software First-level diploma in the Testing Career (Carrera de Testing), providing foundational knowledge in testing discipline, functional testing, and automation basics. Duration: 9 months. Part of the Programa de Educación Permanente of Facultad de Ingeniería - Udelar. Sold to individual students.
• Diploma Tester Profesional de Software Second-level diploma in the Testing Career, advancing skills in functional testing techniques, performance testing, web services testing, methodology, and automation. Builds on the Tester de Software diploma. Sold to individual students.
• Diploma Gerencia de Calidad y Testing de Software Third-level diploma in the Testing Career, focused on leadership, quality management, agile methodologies, and project management in testing environments. Completes the full testing career path. Sold to individual students and QA leads.
• Especialización en Automatización del Testing Funcional Specialization program focused on test automation techniques, tools, and frameworks for functional testing. Duration: 18 weeks. Sold to individual testers and professionals seeking deep automation skills.
• Especialización en Testing de Performance Specialization program covering performance testing methodology, load testing, stress testing, and performance analysis tools. Duration: 14 weeks. Sold to individual testers and IT professionals.
• Cursos y Talleres (Short Courses) Portfolio of short courses (4-5 weeks each) covering web services testing, security testing, usability testing, accessibility testing (WCAG 2.1), database testing, code quality, and agile testing methodologies. Sold to individual professionals seeking targeted upskilling.
• Curso Gestión de la calidad y el testing en entornos DevSecOps Innovative course covering quality management and testing practices in DevSecOps environments, integrating security and automation in CI/CD pipelines. Sold to individual testers and DevOps professionals.
• Curso Introducción a la Inteligencia Artificial Aplicada al Testing de Software Course introducing AI concepts applied to software testing, exploring how artificial intelligence enhances testing processes and outcomes. Sold to individual testers and quality professionals.
• TestingUy Annual software testing conference and community initiative, founded in 2014. The largest testing event in Latin America, featuring talks, workshops, panels, and networking. Organized by CES and QAlified. Serves as a community engagement and brand-building program.

Quantifiable outcome

• 22+ years of continuous operation as market leader in Uruguay
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and core.

• GuayoyostrategicTechnology or Integration · 18 September 2023Cybersecurity company dedicated to security testing services. Collaboration aims to complement CES's testing capabilities with specialized cybersecurity expertise. Guayoyo is part of the Pyxis ecosystem as a Core Cybersecurity Unit since 2017.
• Intendencia Departamental de PaysandúcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Strategic alliance for the creCÉS - Paysandú program. Provides facilities (Escuela de Oficios Digitales) and support for software testing training in Uruguay's interior, with financing from Inefop.
• QAlifiedstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Co-organizer of TestingUy event alongside CES since 2014. QAlified is a software quality company that shares the co-organization of the largest testing event in Latin America.
• Facultad de Ingeniería - Universidad de la República (FING-UDELAR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2004Founding partner and primary academic institution. CES was created as a joint initiative between Fing-Udelar (represented by Fundación Julio Ricaldoni) and Cámara Uruguaya de Tecnologías de la Información (Cuti). All CES courses are part of the Programa de Educación Permanente of the Faculty of Engineering.
• Fundación Julio Ricaldoni (FJR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2004Represents Fing-Udelar in the CES founding initiative. Provides academic endorsement and institutional support for testing education programs.
• Cámara Uruguaya de Tecnologías de la Información (CUTI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2004Industry association representing Uruguayan IT companies. Co-founded CES in 2004 with Fing-Udelar to improve software quality in Uruguay's IT industry.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Applause (now Encapture): Software testing services provider offering functional, accessibility, and usability testing with a crowdsourced tester model. Comparable service mix (functional, accessibility, usability testing) to CES, though global rather than Latin America-focused.
• Testlio: Global software testing services firm combining a vetted freelance tester network with managed QA services. Directly comparable to CES's testing services and corporate training offerings, but operating at much larger international scale.
• Sogeti: Capgemini-owned IT consultancy with a dedicated global Testing Practice covering functional, performance, automation, and cybersecurity testing. Comparable to CES's professional testing services and corporate training, but at global enterprise scale.
• QAlified: Argentine software quality consultancy that co-organizes TestingUy alongside CES. Both are testing-focused consultancies with strong academic/community positioning across Latin America, making QAlified the closest comparable in services, geography, and event-led GTM.

Broad incumbents

• Tricentis: Enterprise software testing platform covering functional, performance, and API testing with AI-driven automation. An incumbent adjacent to CES's automation, performance, and DevSecOps service lines but product-led rather than services-led.
• GlobalLogic: Large IT services firm with dedicated quality engineering and testing practices, including embedded QA for enterprise digital transformation. Comparable to CES at the IT services and embedded testing layer, but at much greater geographic and scale scope.
• BrowserStack: Cloud testing platform for cross-browser, mobile, and accessibility testing. Adjacent to CES's accessibility and functional testing services; a tooling-led incumbent rather than services-led peer.
• Sauce Labs: Cloud-based testing platform for web and mobile app test automation. Adjacent to CES's Automation of Functional Testing service line; overlaps on tooling but competes less on services and not at all on the academic training side.

Others

• Thoughtworks: Global technology consultancy with strong quality engineering and DevOps practices. Adjacent rather than directly competitive — overlaps with CES on quality assurance consulting, agile methodologies, and continuous delivery testing.

Emerging players

• PractiTest: Test management and QA platform offering end-to-end test case management, exploratory testing support, and analytics. Touches CES's quality management and testing methodology/consulting offering from a tooling angle.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ces_com_uy
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@CentrodeEnsayosdeSoftware
• Instagraminstagram.com/ces_uruguay
• Facebookfacebook.com/CESUruguay
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ces-uruguay

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Centro de Ensayos de Software