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Systems Development

Custom Software & Systems Development

Off-the-shelf covers ninety per cent of what you do. The remaining ten per cent is your business. We build that part — platforms, integrations, and internal systems — to a fixed scope, with weekly demos and code you fully own.

What you can rely on

  • Weekly demos against working software
  • Fixed scope and price on defined builds
  • Full source, infrastructure, and documentation handover

Where Custom Software Goes Wrong

Rarely in the code. Usually in the scope, the handover, and everything the estimate quietly excluded.

Estimates That Were Never Estimates

A number given before anyone looked at the integrations, the edge cases, or the data migration. The overrun was decided before the first commit.

Spreadsheets Doing Load-Bearing Work

Critical operations run on a workbook one person maintains. It works until they are on leave, and it cannot be audited.

Systems That Do Not Talk to Each Other

Staff rekey the same data into three tools. The error rate is invisible until reconciliation, and reconciliation is manual too.

A Build You Cannot Take Over

No documentation, no tests, no deployment runbook, and no way to hire for the stack. You are locked in by ignorance rather than contract.

Start here

Scoping Sprint

A real specification and a real price, in two weeks.

Duration
2 weeks
Price
Fixed, from $9,500
Team
2–3 specialists

What is included

  • Process mapping across the workflows the system must support
  • A technical specification with data model, integrations, and interfaces
  • Clickable prototype of the primary user journeys
  • A risk register naming what could blow the budget, and how we contain it
  • A phased delivery plan with a fixed price for phase one

Credited against the build if you proceed. The specification is yours to tender elsewhere if you do not.

Book a Discovery Call

Deliverables

What Ships with Every Build

The things that decide whether you can still operate the system in three years.

Source and infrastructure
Application code plus infrastructure-as-code, in your repository and your cloud account from the first week.
Automated test suite
Feature and unit coverage over the business rules, running in CI on every push.
CI/CD pipeline
Automated build, test, and deploy with a rollback path that has actually been exercised.
Data model documentation
Schema, migrations, retention rules, and the reasoning behind the structure.
Runbook
How to deploy, restore from backup, rotate credentials, and diagnose the common failures.
Integration contracts
Documented interfaces, authentication, rate limits, retry semantics, and failure behaviour.
Access and audit model
Roles, permissions, and an activity log that stands up to a compliance review.
Handover sessions
Recorded walkthroughs with your team, plus a defect warranty after go-live.

What We Build

Custom Web Platforms

Operational systems, portals, and internal tools built around how your business actually works.

Systems Integration

Making finance, CRM, fulfilment, and bespoke systems agree with each other, reliably.

API Design and Development

Versioned, documented, rate-limited interfaces for partners and internal consumers.

Legacy Modernisation

Incremental replacement of systems that cannot be switched off, without a big-bang cutover.

Billing and Payments

Stripe integrations, invoicing, reconciliation, refunds, and webhook-verified payment state.

Data Pipelines and Reporting

Warehousing, transformation, and reporting your finance team will actually trust.

Product Design and UX

Research, interaction design, and accessible interfaces designed for daily operational use.

Cloud and DevOps

Infrastructure-as-code, environment parity, observability, and cost control.

Maintenance and Support

Retained capacity for fixes, dependency upgrades, and steady improvement after launch.

How a Build Runs

  1. 01

    Scope

    Weeks 1–2

    Process mapping, technical specification, clickable prototype, and a fixed price for phase one.

  2. 02

    Design

    Weeks 3–4

    Data model, integration contracts, interface design, and the delivery plan broken into demoable slices.

  3. 03

    Build

    Weeks 5–16

    Two-week iterations, each ending in a demo of working software in a real environment. You can change direction at every boundary.

  4. 04

    Operate

    Ongoing

    Launch support, defect warranty, monitoring, and retained capacity for the improvements that follow real usage.

What We Build With

Backend

  • PHP and Laravel
  • Python
  • Node.js
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • Redis

Frontend

  • TypeScript
  • React
  • Vue
  • Livewire
  • Tailwind CSS

Infrastructure

  • AWS
  • Google Cloud
  • Azure
  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • Terraform
  • GitHub Actions

Integrations

  • Stripe
  • Xero and QuickBooks
  • Salesforce and HubSpot
  • Twilio
  • SAP and Dynamics
  • Custom and legacy APIs

Engagement models

Systems Development Pricing and Engagement Options

Indicative starting points, not quotes. You get a written price for your specific scope before any work begins.

Lowest-Cost Entry

01 Option

Scoping Sprint

Specification, prototype, risk register, and a fixed price for phase one.

Starting Price

From $9,500

Timeline
2 weeks
Billing
Fixed price

Best For

You need a credible number before you can get approval.

Discuss This Option
02 Option

Fixed-Scope Build

An agreed system, delivered to an agreed date and price.

Starting Price

From $45,000

Timeline
8–24 weeks
Billing
Fixed price, milestone-billed

Best For

Requirements are stable and the budget must be certain.

Discuss This Option
03 Option

Dedicated Team

A named cross-functional team working only on your roadmap.

Starting Price

From $11,000 per engineer per month

Timeline
3 months minimum
Billing
Monthly per person

Best For

Continuous delivery against a roadmap that will keep changing.

Discuss This Option
04 Option

Support Retainer

Reserved capacity for fixes, upgrades, and incremental improvement.

Starting Price

From $3,500 per month

Timeline
Rolling, 30 days notice
Billing
Monthly retainer

Best For

A live system that needs care without a full-time team.

Discuss This Option

Every option is scoped and priced in writing before delivery begins. No surprise invoices or automatic upgrades.

FAQ

Systems Development: Your Questions Answered

The things prospective clients ask us most often about this service.

Ask us something else
What Drives the Cost of a Custom Build?
In order: the number of external systems it must integrate with, the state of the data being migrated, the compliance and audit requirements, and the number of distinct user roles. The user interface and the choice of framework matter far less than most people expect. A scoping sprint prices these honestly before you commit.
Do We Own the Code?
Entirely. Work is committed to your repository and deployed to your cloud accounts from week one, so there is never a moment where we hold your system hostage. Source, infrastructure code, and documentation are yours on payment.
How Do You Handle Scope Changes Mid-Build?
Delivery runs in two-week iterations with a demo at the end of each. Changes are priced and scheduled at those boundaries, and you can reprioritise anything not yet started at no cost. Nothing gets built without you seeing it working first.
Can You Take Over a System Somebody Else Built?
Yes, and it is a common request. We start with a paid technical audit covering code quality, test coverage, security posture, dependency risk, and the realistic cost of maintaining versus replacing it. You get the findings whether or not you engage us to do the work.
What Happens After Launch?
A defect warranty covering anything that does not match the agreed specification, then an optional support retainer for fixes, dependency upgrades, and improvements. Plenty of clients take the handover and run it themselves; the documentation is written on that assumption.
How Do You Keep Our Data Safe During the Build?
Development runs against anonymised or synthetic data wherever it is feasible. Production access is least-privilege and logged, credentials are held in a managed secret store, and every engineer is under a written confidentiality agreement. We will sign your NDA before the first call if you prefer.

Tell Us What You Are Building, and We Will Put Real Numbers on It.

Thirty minutes with the engineer who would run your project. You leave with a scope, a cost range, and a recommended next step — whether or not you work with us.

A 30-minute call with an engineer, not a salesperson. You leave with a scope, a rough range, and a recommended next step — whether or not you work with us.

  • Written scope before you commit
  • NDA signed on request
  • You own all work product