Solutions

Based on the size of the project and thorough analysis of the client’s requirements, it was agreed that we assign 1 Senior QA Engineer to the project. As a dedicated resource, they were to be integrated into the client’s team and collaborate closely with their in-house tech specialists.

Responsibilities of our Senior QA Engineer included:

• Setting up the QA process on the project from scratch
• Performing all the necessary QA activities on a daily basis
• Regular communication with the client’s tech team as well as participation in their meetings and standups
• Providing proactive recommendations on how to improve the client’s onboarding documentation for end-users

Project-specific QA activities included: 

• Testing firmware updates, firmware OTA update, firmware + SDK compatibility testing
• Testing SDK (logs)

QA Activities Performed:

• Manual Testing
• Functional testing
• Compatibility testing / cross-platform testing (totally 12 mobile devices, including iOS and Android phones, iPad mini, and iPad Pro)
• Exploratory testing
• Ad-hoc testing
• UI/UX testing
• Smoke testing
• Regression Testing
• Preparing Documentation: test Plan, test cases, test scenarios, traceability matrices, bug reports

Solutions

Following the client’s request, we formed a development team that analyzed the business requirements for the project. The team prepared the documentation necessary for project launch, including a software requirements specification, project management plan, and work breakdown structure. As a software development methodology for the project, we chose Agile.

The tech stack we chose for the development of the solution included Angular for the frontend and .NET, MySQL, and C# for the backend. We used Microsoft Azure as the cloud computing service for the platform and Azure Blob Storage for efficient data management.

In the course of development, the solution has grown from a simple combination of .NET and Angular 2 to a multi-server solution with the latest tech updates and a distributed database, integrated with the existing ecosystem’s user account and analytics systems that feature their own libraries and permission control. In addition, we developed a clever workaround that allows Angular to be more friendly to search engines. 

The workaround is that the main content related to pages that can be indexed by the search engine is not provided by Angular itself but by the server when visiting individual URLs. That is, for a user visiting a specific page, the content is generated by Angular. And if we are dealing with a search bot that goes to specific URLs from the sitemap, the bot receives pre-formed content—the necessary amount of meta-information generated so that everything could be indexed by the search engine. This gives the bot a clear picture of what URL provides what information to users.

Challenge

One of the requested solutions for the client’s ecosystem of digital services was a web tool where architects, engineers, and designers could configure complete wall, floor, ceiling, roof, and other Building Information Modeling component assemblies using generic and manufacturer product data, then download these assemblies for use in their Revit projects. The client already had a legacy solution that wasn’t living up to their customers’ expectations, so our team was tasked with the development of a completely new one from scratch.

Solutions

After a thorough estimation and requirement analysis, we formed a development team and prepared all the necessary documentation for the launch of the 2.0 version of the project. As a software development methodology for the project, we chose Agile.

With consideration of a rich variety of 300,000+ available BIM components that users would have to be able to comfortably research, select, and configure, we needed to make sure that the new version of the content configurator features good usability and utmost performance. To deliver on those requirements, we went with .NET Core and C# for the backend, Angular for the frontend, and Unity as a rendering engine for the tool. As the cloud computing service for the entire platform, we chose Microsoft Azure.

The solution enables users to export product data for each layer in their assemblies or system families. They can customize these assemblies and system families layer by layer or use already assembled system starters from an orderly catalog. 

The tool is integrated with the existing ecosystem’s user account and analytics systems. For customers this means that they can save projects to their profile, keeping all their assemblies in one place, sorted by products, groups, organizations, and so on. They can easily edit, download, and share these projects with their team and organization. For manufacturers, on the other hand, the integrated systems provide the means to efficiently analyze the popularity of their products based on the assemblies the customers have selected/built and saved to their profiles.

Solutions

Developing corporate websites is one of the most common tasks for the QArea team, but we still approach every case with a clean slate and design the strategy from scratch. This case was not an exception. Taking into consideration the client’s requirements, the team used a range of technologies, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Bootstrap, and jQuery to create a website that works well on any desktop and mobile device. The team also used WordPress to add blog functionality to the website.

The biggest challenge of this project was to keep the new site recognizable to the existing customers while also following the latest web development trends. However, combining our innovative approach to web development with our respectful treatment of brand identity is what we do at QArea on a daily basis.

Solutions

The development of the analytics tool started from scratch. To provide the client with an industry-specific analytics solution that would deliver on their business goals best, our team carried out an in-depth research of the client’s business and the latest analytics solutions on the market.

Considering the huge amounts of data the system would have to process, we decided to go with a stack of reliable technologies that feature great scalability and performance. The core backend technologies used on the project are .NET, C#, and MySQL. The front end of the system is built on Angular. We used Microsoft Azure for storage, organization of web services, and to install virtual machines. We combined these and other advanced technologies to ensure stable uninterrupted operation of the service and guarantee that the system will not lose a single piece of statistical data in any event.

The analytics tool is integrated with various third-party plugins, libraries, and APIs to improve performance. The solution features new types of queues and advanced failsafe systems to prevent data loss. One of these failsafe systems involves an API with a separate backup frontend that does not allow the service to go down. Even if the main front end of the solution fails, the APIs will still continue to work, preventing downtime of the service.

The system is integrated with a Salesforce API to enable building product manufacturers to effectively manage the data that would help them promote products and grow their customer base.

To ensure the utmost performance of the system, the incoming data, as it is processed, is aggregated into appropriate tables. For each required type of analytical data, be it page views, visits, average time on site, bounce rate, or downloads, the system creates a separate table with aggregated data. This is done so that these millions of records are not stored in one huge table. Although such a table is also maintained as an archive, so that this data can be verified.

The solution also features a comprehensive user account system with access permissions functionality where the manufacturer’s admins can manage access to analytical data for different members of the company’s team on the platform.

Challenge

The client set out to develop not just one product, but an ecosystem of products that was aimed at a wide range of B2B and even some B2C customers. For this fintech web design project, the goal was to demonstrate the company’s main selling points, such as reliability, simplicity of operations, and modern feel, through visual cues.

Web design and web development for fintech are among our strong suits, which is exactly how the client discovered us in the first place and how our portfolio of fintech website design projects fully matching their needs sealed the deal. We were also able to successfully demonstrate our expertise in developing complex solutions from an idea to a fully functional product. Moreover, during our first talks about the project, it turned out that our vision matched the client’s, and therefore, there was already a strong foundation for a successful project.

The key challenge in front of the team was to maintain a consistent design throughout the existing and future products, as well as incorporate the client’s requirements while following the design principles we abide by, such as making the UI/UX features of the website fit the needs of different categories of users. Plus, with several successful solutions operating in this niche, it was important for the client’s product to stand out and convey the right message, which is the absolute trustworthiness of the service. With a full understanding of what needed to be done and a myriad of ideas already, we set out to work.

Solutions

As it’s often the case, the work on the project started with the research phase. Our team had to conduct thorough research of every technology and service the company offered, as well as research the design of the closest competitors: how they handled the UI/UX aspects of their websites, how easy their products were to navigate, and which cutting-edge design elements they used, if any.

The next stage of the research process was communicating with the prospective end users of the solutions, who were mostly B2B customers, to find out what they were looking for in a modern and reliable fintech solution, and which design and navigation elements they considered to be essential in a software product like this one.

At the end of the day, we had to decide on the design approach that would best represent the advantages, features, and capabilities of the company’s proprietary solutions. We spent two weeks conducting research and conceptualizing the design of the future website. We provided the client with visual guidelines and detailed information on what drove our choices in the process while also being open to the client’s input.

After the plan, the deadlines, and the budget were all approved, we launched into designing the website. We used Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop for layout design, slicing, and all the artwork. The website was designed to ensure minimum page size and quick load times while boasting impressive looks and enjoyable interactivity on both the desktop and mobile versions. 

Our design team picked the most contemporary fonts that looked good on every platform. The primary color used across the website was a calm shade of mint green, which we chose for two reasons: one, it’s the color that conveys security and trustworthiness, and two, it’s the ideal color to use for a financial-themed website. The designers working on the project put extra effort into creating detailed icons and illustrations for the website to demonstrate the most benefits of the service in little time.

In addition to designing the website itself, our design team was also involved in a string of related projects, including mobile app design, promotional materials design, and so on. The goal was to ensure the consistency of the website design with the design of supplementary materials to create a recognizable brand.

Throughout the duration of the project, we implemented our process maturity principles, which are especially vital for fintech web design due to the complexity of the solution and the high expectations the stakeholders have for the product. The client was also continuously impressed by our flexibility and quick thinking, which allowed us to bring new ideas to life in the shortest possible amount of time.