Appliscale

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

ExtraHut is a UX design studio focused on websites and dedicated software.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Appliscale?

We needed support for the development of a system we designed for a client. We’re designers and researchers, and we needed support for the software part.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Appliscale developed the whole application. Its features include invoicing, legal management tracking, and keeping a calendar and status meetings.

They created a cloud-based software hosted on AWS, with a React frontend and a Python backend. There will probably be a mobile app in the future. They’ve worked with us for a single client.

What is the team composition?

The team size has been 7–8 people, depending on the project phase. We have a project manager, front- and backend developers, a DevOps specialist, and a tester.

How did you come to work with Appliscale?

We found them through Software Development Association Poland (SoDA) after meeting them at a conference there.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost so far is 100,000€–150,000€ (approximately $113,000–$170,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Appliscale in December 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Appliscale has helped us with the process. They have well-organized project managers and scrum masters. We started with a design stage with the client, and we started development with Appliscale after we created all functionalities. 

The team led the whole development process with us and the client. Their project management was high-quality.

How did Appliscale perform from a project management standpoint?

We have daily standups to summarize what has been delivered and what is planned for the next day, and we have larger meetings at the beginning and end of each week to arrange sprints and give feedback to the team. 

Appliscale has really good client communication skills. We mainly use Jira for project management, as well as Microsoft Teams. We also use Adobe XD for prototyping.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re specialists in cloud solutions, especially AWS. The team is highly skilled in setting up this infrastructure, and it's been awesome to have their support.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have higher than average prices, but they deliver good quality, so it is worth it.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Clients should ensure that their projects are well-managed and that they know what problems could arise and how they want to handle them. Problems always come up when building custom software, and Appliscale found a solution for it. 

We felt we knew what was going on in the project, so we felt safe. We gave them access to our client, and we worried about that, but it turned out to be a good decision.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Novomatic Technologies Poland is a partner of NOVOMATIC, Europe's number one in high-tech gaming technology. The NOVOMATIC Group is one of the biggest international manufacturers and operators of gaming equipment. The Group has locations in 45 countries and exports high-tech electronic gaming equipment and solutions to more than 70 countries. The Group operates more than 260,000 gaming terminals in its almost 2,100 gaming operations as well as via rental concepts. NTP is an R&D center for NOVOMATIC. In the last 20 years, it has evolved by implementing projects featuring state-of-the-art technologies and tools. As a Product Owner / Project Manager, I am responsible for creating products delivered to our clients from the Novomatic group. I am responsible for contact with the client to determine the product requirements, creating a product with the highest possible business value and care for the correct the course of the product life cycle. As part of cooperation with Appliscale, I am responsible for the specification of requirements and direct contact for the needs of project coordination.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Appliscale?

We wanted to create a new product for promotional purposes based on complex event processing.

What were your goals for this project?

The domain of our products is characterized by the need for communication with many management systems, machines, and other physical devices. Thanks to processing events from various places, we wanted to create a product that would allow analyzing these events and responding to them with appropriate promotional mechanisms. We chose Appliscale because it had experience in complex event processing. The supplier has won our trust through good contact, professionalism and a flexible approach.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

The choice of Appliscale was the result of a recommendation from our group of architects. I have no knowledge of the supplier selection process. The main reason was the company's experience in creating products using complex event processing. An additional advantage was the company's headquarters not far away, which allowed for better contact between both parties.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Appliscale was involved in product development from the beginning (when the requirements were defined) through the preparation of the MVP version of the product to its final implementation. The scope of work included the analysis of needs together with proposing appropriate technological solutions, development on both the backend and frontend sides, preparation of system tests along with extensive performance tests and system monitoring.

What was the team composition?

The team on the Appliscale side consisted mainly of full-stack developers - from 2 to 5 people depending on the phase of the project. Project Manager and CEO also supported us in all coordination works.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

The results of work are the internal company's secret so I can’t share any. But we’ve been working constantly on this product for almost two years, and most of the works were on Appliscale side so you can imagine what the impact of the engagement was.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Perfectly. I rate the project management, contact, flexibility in action very highly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Independence, timeliness and reliability in action. The artifacts delivered have always been of high quality.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There are certainly many places that can be improved (as in any company). However, I have no objections to customer-supplier cooperation.