Sanna

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for Tech Soft 3D, and we’re a B2B software toolkit provider. We specialize in engineering software toolkits specifically for 3D engineering, mechanical and manufacturing CAD, 3D printing, building, construction, and shipbuilding. My role is the senior manager of technical marketing, and I have a very technical role where I create marketing assets that explain the technical nature of our software toolkits using videos and apps to demonstrate our technology.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Sanna?

We’ve engaged with Sanna for many years and they’ve provided us with a variety of their custom software development services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Sanna has provided us with UI design services, including layouts for UX and interface icons. Most recently, they’ve been assisting us with building the frontend aspect of websites and web apps for us, and then they have a major engagement around full-stack web development — they have a number of UI tool kits that we pair with our 3D graphics.

Additionally, they’ve also tackled a number of hard data management issues that include augmentation, mining, and connection with a large backend, and have built databases and connected them to 3D data. We’ve used Vanilla, JavaScript, HTML, and right now they’re delivering things on top of something called Lib Components. They’ve also done work in Polymer and have designed assets using Sigma and Adobe Creative Suite.

Sanna has allowed querying of complicated information that we can present, and has also provided consultancy around other apps.

Our process starts with a statement of work and milestone check-ins, then the delivery. We’ve probably executed 4–5 major projects and we’re just about done wrapping up our final deliverable which is a POC — now we’re in maintenance mode to finish some minor upgrades and feature requests.

What is the team composition?

My main interface is with the principal, Anirban (Managing Director), but there is a larger team I’ve been in contact with over the last two years. I’ve probably worked with 3–4 additional people who do a lot of backend work, but I just don’t interface with them.

How did you come to work with Sanna?

One of my colleagues brought them on board after they worked together at a previous company. I believe Sanna was only organized maybe five years ago, but we’ve been using them as a vendor for at least 7 years now.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested about $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in June 2014, and it’s still ongoing as I’m certain we’ll have more projects for them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Sanna’s design sense is excellent, intuitive, and elegant — they spend a lot of time thinking about the user experience and how something looks and behaves. They’re on the cutting edge of design and have been successful in solving tough problems. The work they’ve done has allowed us to present our products in a very professional way that stands out.

How did Sanna perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve gone above and beyond their performance and have been delivering what’s requested. Their project management has been responsive and transparent, so I just have positive things to say. We typically communicate through email, phone, Zoom, and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re impressed by how they tackle tough problems, and how they’re building really innovative backend engines for our industry — they look further into what the industry needs, and it’s very exciting to be partnered with them to see how it’s affecting the industry.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t have any comments or suggestions, since we’ve had a good engagement with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The way I work with contractors is I always try to make sure that I support them with everything they need. My suggestion is to provide them with their needs quickly so that they can rapidly move forward. They have a large team and they build things with agility, so make sure any questions they may have in terms of access to data or sample cases are answered.

Make sure that you support them with information that they need so that they can continue their velocity and achieve a lot.