Custom solutions

The problem that does not fit on any of the other pages.

Plenty of real work does not match a service description. A reporting pipeline held together by one person’s spreadsheet. Two systems that need to exchange data and have no integration. An internal process that has outgrown the tool it lives in. If you can describe the problem, we can tell you whether we are the right people to solve it.

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You might need this if

  • The process spans several systems and no single vendor owns the whole thing.
  • An existing tool does almost what you need, and the gap is costing real time.
  • Something critical depends on one person and one spreadsheet.
  • You need a technical second opinion before committing to a vendor or an architecture.
  • A previous developer left mid-project and the work needs picking up.
  • You are not sure whether the problem is technical, procedural, or both.

What the work covers

Not every engagement includes all of this. The scope is agreed in writing before anything starts.

  • Discovery and scoping

    A paid, time-boxed investigation that ends in a written recommendation you own — including the recommendation not to build anything, where that is the right answer.

  • Integration between systems

    Connecting platforms with no off-the-shelf integration, including legacy systems that only speak CSV, SFTP or email.

  • Internal tools

    Small applications for a specific internal job, built to be understood and maintained rather than to impress.

  • Taking over stalled work

    Assessing an unfinished codebase honestly: what can be salvaged, what should be rewritten, and what it will realistically take.

  • Technical review

    An independent read of a proposal, an architecture or a quote, written for the person who has to make the decision.

  • Data migration and cleanup

    Moving data between systems with reconciliation, so you can prove nothing was lost rather than hope.

How we approach it

  1. 01

    Understand before quoting

    We do not quote a fixed price for a problem nobody has defined. Discovery comes first, and it produces something useful even if you then go elsewhere.

  2. 02

    Look for the smaller answer

    A configuration change, a different tool or a changed process often beats custom software. We check for that before proposing to build.

  3. 03

    Deliver in visible increments

    Something working and reviewable early, then built on — not a long silence followed by a reveal.

  4. 04

    Build for the next maintainer

    Boring, documented technology chosen deliberately, so you are not dependent on us to keep it running.

  5. 05

    Hand over properly

    Code, credentials, deployment and documentation transferred to you at the end. No hostage infrastructure.

What you end up with

  • A written scope with assumptions, exclusions and open questions stated
  • Working software delivered in reviewable increments
  • Source code in a repository you own from the first commit
  • Deployment and operating documentation
  • A handover session covering how to run, change and recover it
  • An honest account of what was not finished and what it would take

Technologies involved

Tools and standards this work is carried out with — listed because they are what the job uses, not as a claim of vendor partnership.

  • TypeScript / Node.js
  • Python
  • PostgreSQL
  • REST & webhook integrations
  • Docker
  • Linux
  • Git

What this will not do

We will tell you when a problem is outside what we can do well. A referral, or an honest “not us”, is cheaper for you than finding out three months in.

On client examples: we do not publish case studies, logos or testimonials without written permission from the client, and we have none cleared for publication yet. If you need evidence of relevant work before engaging, ask — we will share what we can, appropriately redacted, and say plainly where something was a lab build rather than a client engagement.

Questions about this service

Will you quote a fixed price?

For well-defined work, yes. For a problem nobody has scoped, no — a fixed quote on an undefined problem is either padded against risk or about to become a dispute. We run a paid, time-boxed discovery that produces a written scope, and you can take that scope elsewhere if you prefer.

What happens in discovery?

We look at the current process and systems, talk to the people who actually operate them, and write up what we found: the problem as we understand it, the realistic options including doing nothing, and what each would involve. It is deliberately short and it is yours regardless of what you decide next.

Who owns the code?

You do, from the first commit, in a repository under your account. We do not retain rights over work you have paid for and we do not host it somewhere you cannot reach.

Can you pick up a project another developer abandoned?

Often, though an honest assessment comes first. Sometimes the existing work is a good foundation; sometimes continuing it costs more than starting again. We will tell you which, with reasons, before taking the work on.

Got something that does not fit a category?

Describe the problem in plain language — what happens today, what it costs, and what you wish happened instead. We will tell you whether we can help and what we would do first.

Get in touchHow an engagement works

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