Qubiz

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the COO of Figura Analytics Limited

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Figura Analytics Limited provides advanced liquid analysis technology, helping drinks manufacturers make smarter, data-driven decisions to improve product quality.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Qubiz to accomplish?

• Find a software partner to build our applications within our budget and timeframe.
• Define the scope of the project and requirements.
• Design an efficient way to interpret data and create a fingerprint for each sample
• Connect the hardware and software components in order to deliver results in a matter of minutes, challenging the traditional methods.

SOLUTION

How did you find Qubiz?

Referral

Why did you select Qubiz over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Qubiz were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

The project involved developing two software applications for Figura Analytics. The first application was designed to operate the Figura Analyser, serving as a central communication hub to synchronize all components for efficient liquid processing and data capture. It required converting research code from R to a system capable of live data processing at 50kHz, ensuring accurate, real-time analysis. The second application focused on analyzing the complex data collected, translating it into user-friendly charts and graphs with exportable reports. This solution required robust data management and advanced features to deliver actionable insights for informed decision-making.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The measurable outcomes are:

As opposed to traditional methods, nanoparticle visualisation and analysis can be done in under 5 minutes, not days
50K  Data points generated per second were analysed immediately and processed live 
Applications developed that allowed the operation of the Figura Analyser as well as an application to interpret the data captured and translate it into a simpler form in the way of charts and graphs
Simple and easy installation of a customised Figura software

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Their project management approach is highly flexible and responsive to our specific needs and goals. Projects were consistently delivered on time, and any potential budget overruns were identified early, allowing for corrective action to ensure successful outcomes at every phase. The team prioritized essential deliverables, ensuring that all "Must Haves" were completed before addressing "Would Like to Haves," which ensured we met key objectives efficiently.

What was your primary form of communication with Qubiz?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

What impressed me most about the company was their commitment to providing tailored services that aligned with each customer's specific needs and goals. Qubiz took the time to listen to our challenges and conducted a thorough scoping session before presenting estimates, ensuring they could meet Figura's objectives. This approach not only clarified our goals but also facilitated seamless progress for both parties throughout the project.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Qubiz could have done differently?

Qubiz could improve on having more site visits, but with a limited budget from the customer such as our company, this could be a difficult challenege to achieve. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an IT Director at an energy company that delivers gas and power to customers

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Qubiz?

We needed additional specialists to support our internal team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Qubiz has been providing IT services to us for the last six years. They work as an augmented development team. We have a team of Dutch and Romanian developers, and together, they realize the tasks I offer. Their main focus is on developing logistical systems and managing applications. They use DevOps tools in the Microsoft Azure environment.

The team has worked with us in a specific market in four countries: the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and the UK.

What is the team composition?

The team size changes. At one point, we worked with over 20 Qubiz teammates, mainly developers and BI specialists. Currently, we’re working with four team members. 

How did you come to work with Qubiz?

I knew the owner, Marcel, because he used to be a partner of a company I worked with. When I needed an additional workforce, I thought of a Romanian team and asked Marcel to discuss it.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $1 million–$5 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2018, and the engagement is ongoing. We’re only doing maintenance work because we’re closing our business in the Netherlands soon.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All the projects in the roadmap have been completed on time and within budget, and our company has approved all of them. We’ve been very happy with Qubiz.

How did Qubiz perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Microsoft Teams as our standard communication channel. During development, we've had daily meetings and reviews. We have a monthly supplier board meeting with Marcel, my teams, and my product owner, where we discuss the technical and strategic aspects of the partnership.

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

I want to give a shout-out to Diana, an app developer, and to Vlad, our spokesperson for everything we do. Still, everyone on the Qubiz team has a role to play. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Marcel started Qubiz with a certain mindset. He wanted to start a company with people who liked their jobs and to put people and customers first. We see that in everything — the team has remained the same for the last six years, and we’ve seen improvements in their skills. The Romanian culture fits the Dutch teammates well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

As a company, we’re changing, and we need a different approach from the Qubiz team. They’ve had to adjust to the new way of doing things, and it took some time. However, we’re very happy with how it’s working now.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I support your choosing Qubiz. We’ve been very happy with their work for the last six years. They’ve been very agile and adjusted to our needs well. There are no negatives — the people are nice, the skills are good, and the price is right.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the co-founder of a SaaS company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Qubiz?

We had an idea for a new software product and needed a partner to build it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Qubiz has helped us scope the project. The team has worked on the UI/UX design, technical build, user testing, and deployment into the live environment. Qubiz has shared with me several different visions for how the product would look and feel, and we've worked collaboratively with them to make the final choices.

What is the team composition?

We've worked with various teammates from Qubiz, including one of the co-founders, developers, designers, project managers, testers, and coders.

How did you come to work with Qubiz?

I knew Qubiz's co-founder from a previous engagement and also because I had seen the quality of their work on behalf of this client.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent around $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Qubiz has consistently performed on time and within budget.

How did Qubiz perform from a project management standpoint?

We've set up project teams on our side and Qubiz’s side. We've had ongoing weekly meetings throughout the entire project's lifecycle. We haven't had issues around budget inflation or timing delays. I believe Qubiz uses Jira internally.

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

I want to highlight Norbert's work. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Qubiz's team has nice people who do excellent work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have no complaints at all.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The Qubiz project team are great, but I would recommend having someone on your own team who is fully committed to your project and has at least a basic understanding of technical issues, product development and project management.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the product owner of a warehousing software company. We make warehouse management systems (WMSs) as a fully cloud-based software system. What happens between the four walls of the warehouse, we guide it and direct it so that the user has less thinking to do. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Qubiz?

Our WMSs were based on old technology and couldn’t give us what we needed. We wanted to create a completely new WMS from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Qubiz worked quite closely with us. We know everything from the functional side and described it all to them. In the past, we were a bit more involved in the technical solution, but that knowledge is completely with Qubiz now. We now make sure that the functional part is described well so they can do the technical part without any issues.

We’re building everything on Microsoft Azure components.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a total of 40 people last year. There’s a scrum manager, a system architect, and a quality control person who does automated tests, unit tests, running them every day to check what’s wrong and what’s working well. For the rest of the team, one-third are testers while two-thirds are developers.

How did you come to work with Qubiz?

When we started from scratch again, we searched for who would be the best partner. We had a lot of conversations with different suppliers. In the end, we felt Qubiz was the best fit from both a cost and quality perspective.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2015, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Running a warehouse can be quite complex. We are running a fully automated warehouse in the US with 100,000 other places with our WMS. If you could see the complexity and size of that warehouse, you’d understand that it’s quite an achievement.

How did Qubiz perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re really adaptable and flexible. We get 24/7 support. When the fully automated warehouse went live, Qubiz had a couple of developers on-site doing support. The relationship is good, and I really enjoy working with them. 

We work in two-week sprints. Most communication is between the technical leads and the functional leads in each of the three scrum teams. Everybody is allowed to shoot questions to me. We talk mostly through Skype. Each month, I spend a week in Romania.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We do a lot of social activities together. For instance, Qubiz supports a foster home in a village nearby where they’re situated. Each year, we go to that foster home together. Qubiz always brings some clothes and goodies, and we make sure that our side has some gifts for the foster children as well. They do a lot for the community, not just their own employees.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We have no issues. I have a lot of fun working with Qubiz.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go see them in person every now and then.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am a manager for De Rooy Transport

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

High and heavy transport

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Qubiz to accomplish?

• Develop datawarehouse + report layer
• Develop specific applications

SOLUTION

How did you find Qubiz?

• Referral
• Other

Why did you select Qubiz over others?

• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Qubiz were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Connecting to multiple data sources (on-premise and cloud) and make data available through a reporting layer.

Also developing custom applications to support business specific needs.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Reliable data source for reports and applications used in daily operations.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The team is very flexible and open to use new technologies.

What was your primary form of communication with Qubiz?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

young people, very willing to learn and directly turn knowledge into action.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Qubiz could have done differently?

None.