NuBinary

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CEO of NeuralSeg. We provide analysis of medical images.

What challenge were you trying to address with NuBinary?

We were developing a new algorithm and we needed a company to help us build a web application to offer this algorithm as a service.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They're using deep learning methodologies to develop a web platform that enables uploading of medical images and their analysis in the Cloud. The app will also support visualization of the results in a web browser and an option to download them. They used Ruby on Rails on the backend and JavaScript on the frontend. The platform itself is built on Google Cloud and I used Python to develop the algorithm.

What is the team composition?

I work with one of their co-founders and a developer.

How did you come to work with them?

One of their founders is on my advisory board.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent about $15,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in April 2018 and the relationship is ongoing.

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

They've met all of our expectations. If there are bugs, they address them immediately and make sure everything works well.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They're doing a great job and keep me up-to-date with the project. I can see the code online, in GitHub, so I know what they're working on. We usually use Slack to communicate, but we also have phone calls every two weeks.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were able to build a scalable platform from the ground up and meet our deadlines.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything. Maybe they could have more documentation for me.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear about what you want to accomplish.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a co-founder of Smart Cocoon, overseeing operations and overall company management. We provide a device that boosts airflow in different rooms. It connects to Wi-Fi networks and retrieves information from smart thermostats.

What challenge were you trying to address with NuBinary?

We were struggling in different ways, working with freelancers on an hourly basis. It wasn’t efficient and led to a lot of problems with our Wi-Fi connectivity, firmware, and circuit board. We’d spent a lot of money but didn’t have a product that worked properly.

What was the scope of their involvement?

NuBinary worked on fixing some issues with our product. For example, we have a circuit board that needs to connect to the Wi-Fi network of a house. It’s programmed to connect with the local mobile app and the cloud environment. NuBinary added a push button for resetting the firmware.

They created a new custom dashboard where we can properly manage our users. We can see what kinds of thermostats are being used and which ones are online. They’re also currently working on our new mobile app. We used to have a native Android app, which had constant problems with the setup of the units. The current version uses the React platform, which can compile to both iOS and Android.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with three or four people from their team, including their head. There were more people involved, but I never contacted them directly.

How did you come to work with NuBinary?

We’re part of the Waterloo Accelerator Program, working under the supervision of the University of Waterloo. We got to know NuBinary through these channels, as they were part of the community as well. We found them to be knowledgeable people who knew what they were doing. They gave us three sessions of free consultation, working to understand the project, not just obtain a contract.

How much have you invested with them?

The initial work cost $25,000. The overall contract will be around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with NuBinary in September 2017 and have slowly ramped up the engagement since then.

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

They worked to minimize our costs and build properly functioning results. We’d been selling our product for a year before they joined, but we were experiencing constant problems. Over the last few months, our customers have been much happier than before. We’ve stopped receiving complaints about the product not working.

How did NuBinary perform from a project management standpoint?

They give us constant updates on the work process. The work started with our old backend, to which we assigned a budget for fixes while the new backend was being built. During that phase, we used to get calls from customers complaining about their devices. Whenever I told NuBinary about this, they informed me that they were already working on the issue. They were dedicated to our issues even late at night, so I would definitely call them proactive.

They’ve never missed a deadline or the assigned budget. The milestone estimations have been excellent. We usually communicate over the phone and by email, but we also meet in-person at times. We receive detailed reports on the amount of hours and cost of every job.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a technology company and are up-to-date with their field. Our old app developer used a native language, but NuBinary knew the capabilities and weaknesses of React Native. Instead of sticking with the old system, they looked forward.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. They’ve taught me a lot and were able to achieve something that other contractors before them weren’t able to.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

During the time we’ve worked with them, we’ve built a relationship. They’ve come to be not only our contractors, but our friends.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a media software company. We use natural language processing machinery to help film industries determine audience demand and forecast.

What challenge were you trying to address with NuBinary?

We needed help to make our natural language processing algorithm more efficient.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They mostly worked on and cached data, which in turn enhanced computational speed. We use computation because it saves time and makes more sense.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two tech people.

How did you come to work with NuBinary?

A friend who worked with them before referred them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $15,000–$20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August until October 2017.

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

NuBinary helped us increase our natural language processing algorithm’s efficiency by 50%–70%. They definitely knew what they were doing. They had the expertise to help us on the tech side and I loved working with them. They not only solved the tech problem for us, but also helped us enhance our product overall. It was a good experience. We’re very satisfied customers and I would definitely recommend them.

How did NuBinary perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re very flexible and don’t restrict ourselves to any toolboxes. We had in-person meetings quite a few times. We also used Slack and WhatsApp.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are strong both technical- and communication-wise. I’ve dealt with companies before who did coding as cheaply and efficiently as possible, only to find out during redevelopment that their code was a total mess. NuBinary really knew what they were doing. Everything is so organized. It’s fantastic. They increased our efficiency and helped us clean up the code base.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m very happy with what they’ve done.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They handle their business well. They first try to understand what you’re trying to solve and then approach the problem with aligned interest.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a co-founder of in-it, a video crowdsourcing platform that brings people together in an effort to build awareness, bring accountability, and possibly change the world.

What challenge were you trying to address with NuBinary?

My background is in design, so we needed a dev team to do the technical work.

What was the scope of their involvement?

NuBinary developed our web app using Ruby on Rails for the backend and React.js for the frontend. We had a lot of features in the beginning but didn’t know which stacks to use, so they defined the architecture and gave us a roadmap. They suggested removing some features for the minimum viable product (MVP), while still leaving the core functions. The main features were video editing and uploading, but the site is also a social media platform. After this phase, we chose a technology stack and architecture for the final phase.

The platform is intended for video crowdsourcing—people can use hashtags to separate the videos into related topics. After creating a profile, a user can find a topic or “mission” that they want to contribute to; they simply upload their own video to show their experience with the issue. The app serves as an alternative to the biased narratives from conventional media.

What is the team composition?

I mainly work with two people, one of them being NuBinary’s co-founder. He helped put together the team and the requirement document we used to interview people. He even gave each candidate an exam.

How did you come to work with NuBinary?

My husband knew one of the founders, who I got in touch with learn more about the company. He’d worked in the startup world and had good professional experience, so he seemed like a good fit. His attitude and work ethic seemed high, as well.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent about $45,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with NuBinary since August 2017. We’ll launch in 2–3 months.

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

We’ve done user testing on the mission-creating process, and people have liked it. The overall platform isn’t finished yet, though. Most of our testing has been for the UI/UX, not the coding.

How did NuBinary perform from a project management standpoint?

The project has lasted longer than expected, but many people told me delivery estimates aren’t always accurate. As we’ve worked on the product, we’ve added features that’ve changed the timeline.

We use Slack, Jira, and email for communication. We also use Zeplin for sharing and commenting on design files and Google Docs for sharing documents.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I get stressed out easily, but that didn’t seem to bother their team. They’re confident, relaxed, and handle pressure and stress well. I trust them—I know their suggestions are truly meant to benefit the product, not just make them money.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their junior developers could learn to work a bit faster.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Ask for time estimates and whether there’s a way to design faster. I asked why certain tasks took so long, and they told me it’s because they had to build unique items from scratch. Had we used different elements, it could’ve been finished sooner.