Skip to main content
ASO Services

Twelve service lines,
one engineering standard

Each service below describes what the work covers, the problems it typically addresses, how delivery is organised, the outcomes it can support, and the technical capabilities involved. Services are combined as an engagement requires; none of them are sold as a fixed package.

00Service index

  1. S.01Custom Software Development
  2. S.02Web Application Development
  3. S.03Mobile Application Development
  4. S.04Cloud Solutions
  5. S.05API and Systems Integration
  6. S.06DevOps and Infrastructure
  7. S.07UI/UX Design
  8. S.08Software Testing and Quality Assurance
  9. S.09Technical Consulting
  10. S.10Software Maintenance and Support
  11. S.11Cybersecurity Assessment
  12. S.12Data and Automation Solutions
Row of illuminated server racks in a modern data centre aisle

S.01Service

Custom Software Development

Design and construction of software built specifically around an organisation's processes, data model and operating constraints, from internal platforms and workflow tools to customer-facing products.

Typical challenges

  • Processes held together by spreadsheets, email threads and manual re-keying
  • Off-the-shelf products that force the business to work in an unsuitable way
  • Legacy applications nobody can safely change

Potential outcomes

  • A system shaped around real operations instead of a generic template
  • Reduced manual handling and fewer transcription errors
  • A codebase with tests and documentation that can be extended later

Delivery approach

We begin with a technical discovery: process mapping, data inventory, integration points and constraints. From there we agree a slice of functionality that delivers value on its own, build it with automated tests, and iterate in short cycles with a working environment available for review throughout.

Related technical capabilities

  • TypeScript
  • Python
  • Node.js
  • Relational and document databases
  • Domain modelling
  • Event-driven design

S.02Service

Web Application Development

Browser-based applications: dashboards, portals, admin systems, booking and ordering flows, and public sites where performance, accessibility and search visibility matter.

Typical challenges

  • Slow interfaces that frustrate daily users
  • Applications that break on mobile or fail accessibility requirements
  • Front-ends tightly coupled to a single backend implementation

Potential outcomes

  • Responsive interfaces that behave predictably across devices
  • Measurable improvements in load and interaction timings
  • Front-end code that can evolve without a rewrite

Delivery approach

Interfaces are built mobile-first against a documented API contract, with component libraries that keep behaviour consistent. Performance budgets, semantic markup and keyboard operation are set as acceptance criteria before implementation begins.

Related technical capabilities

  • React
  • Server-side rendering
  • Design systems
  • WCAG 2.2 AA practices
  • Core Web Vitals tuning

S.03Service

Mobile Application Development

Applications for iOS and Android, including offline-capable field tools, customer applications and companion apps that extend an existing web platform.

Typical challenges

  • Unreliable connectivity in the field
  • Divergent behaviour between platforms
  • Release processes that make updates slow and risky

Potential outcomes

  • Applications that remain usable with intermittent connectivity
  • Consistent behaviour across supported devices and OS versions
  • Repeatable release process with traceable builds

Delivery approach

We define the offline and synchronisation model before writing feature code, choose a native or cross-platform path based on the device capabilities actually required, and automate builds and store submissions so releases are routine.

Related technical capabilities

  • Cross-platform frameworks
  • Offline-first data sync
  • Push notifications
  • Mobile CI and store pipelines

S.04Service

Cloud Solutions

Cloud architecture, migration and cost review: choosing services, structuring accounts and networks, and moving workloads without disrupting the business that depends on them.

Typical challenges

  • Servers maintained by hand with no reproducible configuration
  • Cloud spend that grows without a clear explanation
  • Environments that cannot be rebuilt if lost

Potential outcomes

  • Environments that can be recreated from source control
  • Clearer relationship between architecture decisions and running cost
  • Scaling behaviour matched to actual demand patterns

Delivery approach

We assess the current workload, define target architecture and a migration sequence, express infrastructure as code, and move services in stages with rollback paths at every step. Cost and capacity are modelled before, not after, the move.

Related technical capabilities

  • Infrastructure as code
  • Containers and orchestration
  • Managed databases
  • Backup and restore design
  • Cost modelling

S.05Service

API and Systems Integration

Connecting applications, third-party platforms and internal databases through documented interfaces, message queues and scheduled data exchange.

Typical challenges

  • The same record maintained separately in several systems
  • Point-to-point integrations that fail silently
  • Vendor APIs with rate limits, partial failures and unclear semantics

Potential outcomes

  • Consistent data across systems with a defined source of truth
  • Integration failures that are visible, diagnosable and recoverable
  • Interfaces that can be reused by future systems

Delivery approach

We define the contract first, including error semantics, idempotency and retry behaviour, then implement with observability built in so failures surface immediately rather than during a month-end reconciliation.

Related technical capabilities

  • REST and GraphQL
  • Webhooks
  • Message queues
  • ETL and scheduled jobs
  • OpenAPI documentation

S.06Service

DevOps and Infrastructure

Build and release pipelines, environment management, monitoring, alerting and the operational practices that keep deployments uneventful.

Typical challenges

  • Manual deployments that only one person can perform
  • No visibility into system health until users complain
  • Long gaps between writing code and running it in production

Potential outcomes

  • Shorter, lower-risk release cycles
  • Problems detected by instrumentation rather than by customers
  • Operational knowledge captured in documentation, not in one person's head

Delivery approach

Pipelines are built to test, build and deploy every change through identical environments. Monitoring, structured logging and alert thresholds are defined together with the team who will respond to them, and runbooks are written for the failures that matter.

Related technical capabilities

  • CI/CD pipelines
  • Containerisation
  • Configuration management
  • Metrics, logs and tracing
  • Incident runbooks

S.07Service

UI/UX Design

Interaction and interface design for applications: information architecture, task flows, wireframes, visual design and reusable component specifications.

Desk with hand-drawn interface wireframes on grid paper next to a tablet showing a greyscale layout

Typical challenges

  • Interfaces that expose the database structure instead of the user's task
  • Inconsistent patterns accumulated over years of additions
  • Training burden caused by unclear screens

Potential outcomes

  • Fewer steps and less ambiguity in frequent tasks
  • Consistent interface behaviour across the product
  • Shorter onboarding for new users

Delivery approach

We study the tasks people actually perform, restructure the flow around them, and prototype before implementation so changes happen while they are still cheap. Design output is delivered as a component system with defined states, not as isolated screens.

Related technical capabilities

  • Task analysis
  • Wireframing and prototyping
  • Design systems and tokens
  • Accessibility review

S.08Service

Software Testing and Quality Assurance

Test strategy and implementation: automated unit, integration and end-to-end suites, exploratory testing, regression coverage and release verification.

Typical challenges

  • Every release introducing regressions in unrelated areas
  • Testing that depends entirely on manual effort before a deadline
  • No agreed definition of what 'working' means

Potential outcomes

  • Regressions caught before release rather than after
  • Confidence to refactor without fear of hidden breakage
  • A shared, written definition of correct behaviour

Delivery approach

We agree acceptance criteria per feature, place tests at the level where they give the most information per second of runtime, and wire the suite into the pipeline so failures block release. Flaky tests are treated as defects.

Related technical capabilities

  • Automated test suites
  • End-to-end browser testing
  • Contract testing
  • Performance and load checks

S.09Service

Technical Consulting

Independent technical assessment: architecture review, technology selection, code audits, feasibility studies and planning support for teams deciding what to build next.

Typical challenges

  • A build-versus-buy decision with no impartial analysis
  • Inherited systems of unknown quality and risk
  • Roadmaps that do not survive contact with technical reality

Potential outcomes

  • A clear picture of technical risk and its cost
  • Decisions supported by evidence and documented trade-offs
  • A sequenced plan the team can actually execute

Delivery approach

We review the code, infrastructure and delivery process, interview the people who operate the system, and produce a written assessment with prioritised findings, effort estimates and options rather than a single prescriptive answer.

Related technical capabilities

  • Architecture review
  • Code and dependency audit
  • Technology evaluation
  • Delivery process assessment

S.10Service

Software Maintenance and Support

Ongoing care of running systems: defect resolution, dependency and platform updates, small enhancements, monitoring follow-up and documentation upkeep.

Typical challenges

  • Systems degrading because nobody owns them
  • Security updates postponed until they become disruptive
  • Knowledge lost when the original developers move on

Potential outcomes

  • Predictable handling of defects and update work
  • Reduced accumulation of technical debt
  • Continuity of knowledge about how the system runs

Delivery approach

Support work is scheduled rather than improvised: an agreed response process for defects, a regular window for dependency and platform updates, and documentation kept current as part of each change.

Related technical capabilities

  • Issue triage
  • Dependency and platform upgrades
  • Backup and restore verification
  • Documentation maintenance

S.11Service

Cybersecurity Assessment

Review of application and infrastructure security posture: authentication and authorisation logic, secret handling, exposure of services, dependency vulnerabilities and data handling practices.

Typical challenges

  • Uncertainty about where sensitive data is stored and who can reach it
  • Credentials shared informally or embedded in code
  • Customer or regulatory questionnaires that cannot be answered confidently

Potential outcomes

  • A prioritised, evidence-based view of security weaknesses
  • Practical remediation work that fits the team's capacity
  • Better documented answers for customer due diligence

Delivery approach

We assess the system against recognised practice, review configuration and code paths that handle identity and data, and deliver findings ranked by realistic impact with concrete remediation steps we can help implement.

Related technical capabilities

  • Access control review
  • Secret management
  • Dependency vulnerability scanning
  • Secure configuration review

S.12Service

Data and Automation Solutions

Data pipelines, reporting foundations and process automation: consolidating sources, cleaning and modelling data, and removing repetitive manual work.

Typical challenges

  • Reports assembled by hand each month from several systems
  • Conflicting numbers depending on who produced the figure
  • Staff time consumed by copying data between tools

Potential outcomes

  • Consistent figures traceable to a defined source
  • Time returned from routine data handling
  • Reporting that updates without manual assembly

Delivery approach

We define the metrics and their exact source, build repeatable pipelines with validation at ingest, and automate the steps that are rule-based and high volume, leaving judgement-based work with people.

Related technical capabilities

  • Data modelling
  • Pipeline orchestration
  • Reporting and BI integration
  • Workflow automation

13Discussing a requirement

Describe the system, the constraint and the deadline. We will reply with an honest assessment of scope and the questions that still need answers.

Email [email protected]