Lofty

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of a data analytics software as a service (SaaS) business. We provide data visualization, artificial intelligence, and machine learning as a platform to companies in manufacturing and finance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Lofty Labs?

We needed to make a solution more robust as a cloud offering. We wanted to increase the availability and scale the platform to support more simultaneous customers. We have heavy-capacity computation jobs that run asynchronously and salaried workers who act as a separate entity. Because of that, we needed a message queue that could work seamlessly between the frontend web server and the solver cores.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They coordinate all of our web server application stacks and DevOps. They migrated an existing algorithm and Flask web server to Django. They also demonstrated strong expertise in Ansible and Terraform. They set up the message queuing system that allowed us to run the web solver piece with high availability and improved performance.

They’re an integral part of the team. There’s no discernable distinction between our people and theirs. They helped expose the algorithm in a stable and reliable way to a broader set of customers and more simultaneous users. They also helped solidify the deployment process for updating the application.

What is the team composition?

We work primarily with Casey (Founder & CEO, Lofty Labs) and a senior developer.

How did you come to work with Lofty Labs?

Casey and I were colleagues in another environment, before he started his own company. When our business started to grow, he was the first person I thought to reach out to. I knew his capabilities and his strengths, and knew he was what we needed.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent $100,000–$200,000 on the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started work in May 2015. The project is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The stability of the platform is much stronger. The number of incidents has decreased and the deployment process has improved. Our team is very happy with their contributions. They do an excellent job with everything they’re responsible for. Their expertise in building robust and scalable web solutions is extremely valuable.

How did Lofty Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

I act as the primary project manager on everything. We used them as an extension of our team, not as an agency. They do an excellent job in that capacity. We communicate them mostly via phone and slack, as well as Trello.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very thorough and are willing to discuss what is best for our business. They wanted to address our business needs and were very knowledgeable. They know how to construct web businesses the right way and help you make solid strategic decisions about your business. They’re great with implementation.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I haven’t seen any areas I would modify.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t go to them with a detailed list of technical specifications that you’ve already fleshed out. If you engage them on a strategic level, their background expertise and knowledge will help you tailor your approach in the most effective way possible.