API Case Study
Time and Tasks
Time and Tasks is a technology company that offers a comprehensive platform designed to optimize productivity and time management for individuals and teams. Their innovative software provides a wide range of features, including task tracking, project management, calendar synchronization, and collaboration tools, all aimed at streamlining workflows and enhancing efficiency. With a user-friendly interface and customizable options, Time and Tasks empowers users to prioritize tasks, allocate resources effectively, and stay organized, ultimately enabling them to achieve their goals and maximize productivity in both personal and professional settings.
Executive Summary
Time and Tasks provides consulting and the technical know-how to help clients become operationally efficient with their distillery, its inventory, and communications. AgileSRC was tasked with taking Time and Tasks manual approach and converting it to an app that would elevate the dependency on multiple pivot tables and formulas that had a tendency to become corrupted. The solution, The Distillery Planning App, provides a simple yet powerful interface to gather data from third parties as well as intake real-time actionable data to provide a clear and concise picture of inventory and bottling runs to eliminate inventory shortages (in raw materials and produced goods).
Why API on Amazon Web Services (AWS)?
AgileSRC, in conversation with Time and Tasks, chose to utilize Amazon Web Services (AWS) as the cloud platform for its solution due to several compelling reasons. Firstly, AWS offered a wide range of highly scalable and flexible services that perfectly aligned with the client's needs and requirements. Time and Tasks recognized the importance of scalability to accommodate its growing needs and fluctuating workloads. With AWS and the insights of AgileSRC, they could easily scale their infrastructure up or down based on demand, ensuring optimal performance and cost-efficiency.
Secondly, AWS provided a robust and secure environment for hosting the application and its data. Security and data privacy were critical considerations for the customer, especially when handling sensitive production-related information. AWS's comprehensive security measures, including encryption, access control, and data protection, gave Time and Tasks client base the peace of mind that their data would be safe and protected.
Furthermore, AWS's global infrastructure and wide range of geographical regions and availability zones allowed for deployment closer to their target users, reducing latency and improving overall user experience. This global reach and reliability of AWS ensured that the clients could serve their customers effectively and efficiently, regardless of their geographical location.
By leveraging AWS's services, AgileSRC could confidently build and deploy the Time and Tasks application, knowing that it had a reliable and flexible infrastructure to support overall needs and success metrics while maintaining the highest levels of security and performance.
Why AgileSRC?
Having had a successful past engagement, Time and Tasks turned again to AgileSRC for its knowledge of app development, AgileSRC's track record of successfully delivering complex projects using Agile methodologies, and its efficient and effective use of AWS.
AgileSRC's deep understanding of AWS provided a significant advantage in addressing Time and Tasks specific needs. AWS offered a robust set of services and tools that could be leveraged to develop a scalable and secure application. With AgileSRC's expertise in AWS, we were able to design a cloud-native architecture that would ensure high availability, data reliability, and the ability to handle the distillery's growing demands.
Partnering with AgileSRC, Time and Tasks recognized their ability to deliver an iterative development process, enabling continuous improvement and adaptability, positioning Time and Tasks as a leader in optimizing the distillery production process and enhancing overall efficiency through a tailored app built on cutting-edge technologies.
The Challenge
Time and Tasks had piqued the interest of its client base with a spreadsheet to calculate and manage the production and bottling of spirits; however, the solution lacked engagement and adoption of users due to the complexities of using Excel to track and communicate the intricacies of the process. What was required was a simple and easy-to-use application that removed the issues and errors that were occurring with its inial attempts and provided seamless syncing, easy entry of variables that did not rely on easily damaged Excel-based formulas or pivot tables that added to a cumbersome process.
The Solution
Incorporating the already-established calculations into the app was a seamless process, allowing for a smooth transition and integration. Additionally, the solution required specific functionalities to address various aspects of the distillery's operations. These included controlling access and implementing a paywall, facilitating data sharing among connected users, and providing actionable insights related to bottling, raw materials control, timing, and production inventories.
To achieve these objectives, AgileSRC leveraged several key AWS services:
API Gateway
AgileSRC utilized API Gateway to create a secure and scalable API layer that facilitated seamless communication between the app and external systems. It acted as a central entry point, ensuring efficient and controlled access to the app's functionalities.
Lambda
Lambda, AWS's serverless computing service, played a vital role in the app's architecture. AgileSRC leveraged Lambda functions to execute code without the need to provision or manage servers. This allowed for efficient and cost-effective execution of specific app functionalities, such as handling data processing and triggering events based on user actions.
RDS (Relational Database Service)
RDS provided a reliable and scalable database solution for the distillery planning app. AgileSRC utilized RDS to store and manage structured data related to bottling, raw materials control, timing, and production inventories. This ensured data integrity and provided efficient access to actionable details for the app's users.
WAF (Web Application Firewall)
To enhance security and protect the app from potential threats, AgileSRC implemented WAF. WAF provided advanced security features such as web traffic filtering and protection against common web vulnerabilities, safeguarding the app and its data from unauthorized access and malicious attacks.
DynamoDB
AgileSRC leveraged DynamoDB, a fully managed NoSQL database service, to store and retrieve non-relational data efficiently. DynamoDB's scalability and high-performance capabilities were utilized to handle the app's data requirements, enabling seamless access and retrieval of information related to production inventories, raw materials control, and more.
Cognito
AgileSRC implemented Cognito to handle user authentication and access control within the app. Cognito provided secure user sign-up, sign-in, and access management capabilities, ensuring that only authorized users could access the app's features and data.
By leveraging these AWS services, AgileSRC was able to develop a comprehensive solution that addressed the distillery's requirements, providing efficient calculations, controlled access, seamless data sharing, and actionable insights across various aspects of their operations.
Benefits
Based on initial data, clients have experienced significant benefits from using the Distillery Planning App developed by AgileSRC. They have observed a 15% increase in operational efficiencies related to raw goods inventory control and production processes. Additionally, the app has contributed to a 10.5% decrease in the cost of goods through efficient timing, inventory management, and ordering of raw goods for Just In Time (JIT) production processes. Furthermore, the app's ability to facilitate better sales prediction in relation to on-hand inventory has led to improved sales flows, reduced backorders, increased positive customer interactions, and minimized wastage.
cloud
computer
WEB
UX/UI, API
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MOBILE
About AgileSRC and AWS
With a focus on being highly responsive and adaptive, AgileSRC provides unique experience and capabilities that blend the right mixture of quality,
performance and cost. From short burn software development efforts, to designing and building end to end projects, AgileSRC can operate autonomously
or as a complementary team to help you achieve your technical and project goals. To achieve these goals AgileSRC depends on the advanced power and
solutions that AWS offers.