Web Dev Support for Lab Testing Company
"We were never left in the dark, like with other development companies. They were never afraid to show me their code, so I could always see what they were working on."
5/5
4.5/5
3.5/5
5/5
Overall:
5/5
Review by:
Adolf Valdez, IT Manager - Lab Testing Company
Background
Project summary:
Buildable Custom Software designed and developed a portal to allow doctors to view reports. The system uses a Linux server running a .NET core, with an SQL server on the backend.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the IT manager at a lab. We primarily do testing of urine and saliva.
Opportunity / Challenge
What challenge were you trying to address with Buildable Custom Software?
We have an old portal that’s running in Flash, which is going away in a couple of years, and we knew the primary developers wouldn’t be able to turn it around in time. We needed some group to come in and turn it around quickly and add advanced features.
Solution
What was the scope of their involvement?
Our primary project was allowing doctors to be able to log into a system and view reports. And we’re also going to add training into it. On our end it enables us, internally, to see what the providers are ordering, to make sure they get something to translate the report and track the reported status as it moves through the testing phase.
We were able to scale the projects since we were supposed to have one project that dealt with the portal and then another project that had to do with the reports. We were able to do both concurrently.
We have a Linux server running a .NET core, and they build the ASPX technologies onto that, and we’re using a SQL server on the backend. They’re interfacing to our Nutshell CRM, and the old database that the old system uses. We wanted to get away from Flash, so they took care of that for us.
They’re using the Angular framework, which I like because it’s very strict and helps us track changes a lot easier. Whenever they do something, we can see it, and identify it.
What is the team composition?
We have one project manager, who was also a developer, one lead developer, three regular developers, and two designers.
How did you come to work with Buildable Custom Software?
They were courting my company when I started working here. I did a review of a Portland-based development company, a national development company, and Buildable. A lot of people liked Buildable because they’re local. I liked the fact that they used the .NET development style since I’m very familiar with it.
How much have you invested with them?
We’ve invested 250,000.
They went over the quote, but thanks to our agile project management methodology, we could see it coming ahead of time.
What is the status of this engagement?
The project began in January 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.
Results & Feedback
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Right now, we’re starting testing, which we decided to host. Everybody here is more excited about the look and feel, and being able to finally get live data. With the old system, we had to export text files and it always took a day. We’re all excited to have something new, fresh, and with more functionality. The reports are more dynamic, and we can actually scale them.
How did Buildable Custom Software perform from a project management standpoint?
We already finished phase one. They worked with an agile methodology, which I like since it adapts and fits what we need. And they were able to give us sprints, wherein they were able to meet all of the deliverables, and then some.
We were able to see, that as a customer, weren’t ready to give them all of the details yet. So, we were able to move those to later sprints, and our ongoing work will be moved to phase two, and we’ll go from there.
They were able to meet all of the deadlines, except for a few, since we were still giving them data to collect. It’s a new process for us, but they were able to keep working on other things to keep themselves busy.
The sprints were all done within an Excel spreadsheet. They have their own project management tool and they also use Jira. I use Jira on my end too. We did weekly standups, to make sure everyone was on the same page, and to make sure we could see any problems coming up.
One of the main selling points for them was that they were here locally, so we were able to run things back and forth if we needed to. I spoke with our project manager every other day on the phone, and we also used Microsoft Teams and Zoom for communication.
What did you find most impressive about them?
I found the best thing I liked about them is their communication. We were never left in the dark, like with other development companies. Some companies say they follow agile, but they don’t, and whatever they finish doesn’t fit with our needs. Buildable Custom Software was able to do things in a day, sometimes. They were never afraid to show me their code, so I could always see what they’re working on.
Are there any areas they could improve?
They’re a newer company and they’re growing. Sometimes they can feel nervous, and they’re afraid of hurting our feelings. Sometimes it felt like I had to reassure them. For the most part, everything they delivered was beautiful. I’m hoping this builds their confidence in their abilities. They’re doing good work for us, and not just for us; I’ve seen what they’ve done for another company, it’s pretty amazing.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Some of the faults with us were that we weren’t ready in certain areas, and that caused them to wait on us. I would make sure you have all your ducks in a row. They move fast, and if you’re not ready, they’re going to be twiddling their thumbs.
