Case studies – Examples of how we work at Control F5, what challenges we have, and what solutions we find 

We know that for many of you, it is important to know not only what clients we have or what technologies we use, but especially to understand very well how we work. So, over the years we have documented some of the most important projects we have managed, and in this summary of case studies you can see some of the challenges we had, what solutions we found, what technologies we used or how many people we involved.

1. Fotografi-Cameramani.ro is the largest and most notorious catalog of wedding photographers and videographers in Romania, and we worked for it from the start. We have spent more than 13,000 hours since 2010 to develop a marketplace for brides looking for photographers and videographers and transform Fotografi-Cameramani.ro into the leading marketing services for the wedding industry.

We have created a custom marketplace based on particular functionalities for this domain, with a user-friendly interface and a well-optimized structure for search engines. For this, throughout the years we have worked with over 12 people who used technologies such as PHP, Javascript, jQuery and HTML. 

Our main challenge was: 

The platform was trying to solve the following pains: couples need to find the right offer quickly in a complex and diversified market. At the same time, photographers and videographers need exposure, and classic marketing channels are no longer enough for advertising in this niche.

The client was looking for long-term collaboration with a software company to outsource the initial marketplace development services and add new features after release based on market feedback.

And the client said:

“Control F5 helped our company from the very beginning when we discussed our business requirements. We have received top-notch advice and have perceived Control F5 more like an invested partner in our business, rather than a simple provider of services. Their software development process is well organized and can be adapted per the customers’ needs. After working with them for such a long time (10+ years already), I know there is nothing they can’t do. Right now our product is the leader in the local market, thanks to Control F5” – Florin Vlad – Product Owner, Fotografi-Cameramani

See more details about this project here.

The National Union of Road Hauliers in Romania (UNTRR- Uniunea Naţională a Transportatorilor Rutieri din România) used an old platform with legacy code and we had to create a new version of the platform to include the existing services, but also to add features required by their customers. Thus we created e-rovinieta.ro, a website with dozens of orders per minute and for which we must always be vigilant, especially during holidays or weekends. 

We worked over 5,000 hours using technologies such as PHP, Laravel, Javascript, VueJS, MySQL, Bootstrap, VueJS and Cordova. 

Our main challenge was: 

The old platform had performance, design, and usability issues that needed to be improved, and there was also a significant backlog with new features that needed to be developed.

Being written over many years and by a series of different developers on a deprecated framework, the volume of time and effort needed to develop new features was significantly large. Also, being a service used by haulers always on the road, there was a need for a mobile application. Last but not least, the company had two different services on two other domains, that needed to be merged under one robust application. UNTRR was looking for a long-term collaboration with a software company to outsource development efforts to add new features.

And the client said: 

We have been working with the ControF5’s team since 2015 when we started collaborating on the e-rovinieta.ro project, an extremely complex project considering that the traffic on the site is very high, with dozens of orders per minute, and in case of a technical problem, the situation can become extremely unpleasant. Beyond the very good technical skills of the team, the most important thing is that ControlF5 specialists are always responsive, often being there for us during after-hours or when many people are on holiday. We have also worked with the Control F5 team on projects such as taxa-de-pod and the UNTRR website. After many years of collaboration, I can say that the people from ControlF5 give us the peace of mind that they can solve even the most unpleasant situations at any time.

Radu Dinescu, Secretary General of the National Union of Road Hauliers in Romania (UNTRR- Uniunea Naţională a Transportatorilor Rutieri din România)

See more details about this project here. 

For the travel agency Travelplanner, a business with more than 150,000 clients and over 30,000 holidays organized for its tourists, we built from scratch a web platform focused on search engine performance, but using the existing API of a core system responsible for hotel data and price management. We also built a custom CMS for their frontend-specific content structure.

We worked more than 2,400 hours using technologies such as PHP, Laravel, Javascript, MySQL, Bootstrap, VueJS, WordPress and Redis.

Our collaboration went well from the beginning because the client’s Product Owner had a good technical understanding, but also because we had great communication with their senior developer who was in charge of developing their core system API and nevertheless because they had a detailed design of the new frontend.

Our main challenge was:

The former website ruled on an old web platform with performance issues and a lack of technical support. At the same time, the company management wanted a new and fresh image in the context of a rebranding and a scaling process. Another challenge for the company was finding skilled developers capable of rewriting a complex project and managing such a team and process, not being specialized in software development.

And the client said: 

“We have been working together for more than two years and during all this time, I was very happy with how we worked together. Most of all, I appreciated the correctness, the proactivity, the seriousness, and the solutions I received. Of course, I would recommend them at any time”. Sebastian Constantinescu – CEO Travel Planner

See more details about this project here. 

BottegaVerde, one of our first clients, gave us the task of creating a custom online shop on a legacy custom-made platform. So, using a custom framework owned by BottegaVerde.ro, we built a complete eCommerce solution, with independent modules, integrated and streamlined for the company’s flows. The project was built over a long period of time (involving around 2,500 hours), with gradually launched functionalities and modules for which we used mainly PHP, Javascript, jQuery, Vue JS, 

Our main challenge was: 

To take control on legacy custom-made software – this was a really big challenge. And would be a difficult task for any product owner to find developers ready and capable to do this job.

And the client said:

Working with this development team was nothing short of exceptional. They undertook the challenging task of revamping our legacy custom-made platform and creating a tailor-made online shop. The project demanded immense dedication, totaling around 2,500 hours of hard work.

Their proficiency in PHP, Javascript, jQuery, and Vue JS shone through as they seamlessly integrated independent modules, optimizing our company’s workflows. The gradual launch of functionalities showcased their meticulous approach and commitment to delivering a top-notch eCommerce solution.

Taking control of a legacy custom-made software is no small feat, but this team rose to the occasion. Their capabilities and dedication truly set them apart. We highly recommend their services to anyone seeking innovative and professional development expertise. Thank you for transforming our vision into a functional reality. – BottegaVerde Team

See more details about this project here.

For Oladent, a Romanian startup launched in 2019 to become the biggest marketplace for dental services, our challenge was to create a marketplace where patients could easily find their best dental clinic.

We dedicated over 1,000 hours to developing a web platform from the ground up, emphasizing efficient searching based on specific criteria and seamless access from mobile devices.

We used mainly technologies such as PHP, and Javascript, but also Laravel, MySQL, Bootstrap, Mapbox, or Digital Ocean and we offered services such as web applications development, UI/UX Design, software testing, business analysis, dev ops, support&maintenance.

Our main challenge was:  

Create a marketplace where patients in need of dental services to easily find their best dental clinic.

For patients, the best choice can mean reviews of other patients, services, pricing, doctors’ reviews, and of course distance and availability for urgent interventions.

For clinics, the platform should be an efficient and important marketing channel and offer them the possibility to differentiate in the market with their strengths.

And the client said:

“Control F5 is the team to work with if you want to keep up to high standards. They have a professional workflow as they stick to results and exceptional quality. They help you with the business logic of your application and they don’t blindly follow on what you’re saying, because they can be really good advisors. This is super important for start-ups.

Overall, they have great skills and communication and I am really happy with what I have achieved with them”.  Cătălin Marica – CEO Oladent

See more details about this project here.

Control F5 Team

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