Setting the foundation for a future-proofed digital presence for Harwin.

We worked closely with Harwin to tackle the key challenges they were facing with their website. They wanted to refresh their brand's online presence, make their site more secure, and deal with the technical issues that had built up over time. Through our consultative approach, we mapped out exactly what Harwin needed - a website that's easier to use, simplified backend processes, and a modern platform that would help them grow.We developed a streamlined solution that brings together <a href="https://sidigital.co/services/integrate/salesforce">Salesforce</a>, <a href="https://sidigital.co/services/integrate/asset-management-software">Bynder</a>, and Payload CMS, all working seamlessly with a Next.js frontend to give users a great experience. The results have been outstanding, with the pages now loading 90% faster, so visitors can find what they need quickly and easily.

Harwin

Harwin’s website was rebuilt from the ground up, and our bespoke solution introduced advanced <a href="https://sidigital.co/services/integrate">custom integrations</a> to allow for efficient product data handling and future scalability.

The website’s architecture was key to its success. We built bespoke middleware that syncs the website with Harwin’s product data stored in Salesforce. Our custom Representational State Transfer (REST) API serves data efficiently to the website frontend, so when Harwin updates the data of any of their 7,000+ products, the website frontend can display the changes almost instantly. Not only does this mean the data is accurate, we also index the data in ElasticSearch for faster filtering and searching. All this has dramatically streamlined Harwin’s internal product management processes. For their customers, this means they have access to up-to-date product information delivered quickly through the website.Our integrations don’t stop with Salesforce though. We’ve also worked with Harwin to integrate Bynder to dynamically pull through product images, downloads, and videos, SnapMagic to display CAD images for users, and TrustedParts to allow users to check stock availability and pricing at third-party Harwin distributors.

Bespoke Integrations

Harwin’s new website is built using Payload, a modern, headless CMS.

Building a site of this scale in Payload has come with countless benefits. From user-facing benefits like rapid page load speeds and editorial tools to make content shine, to client-facing benefits like the built-in SEO tools and clear and simple backend user interface, Payload has proven to be an excellent choice for Harwin and us. If you want to learn more about Payload, <a href="https://sidigital.co/lab-notes/why-weve-swapped-wordpress-for-payload">read our Lab Note about the benefits</a>.

Built in Payload

Since 1952, Harwin has been an industry leader in electrical connectors used in space ships, airplanes, and electric vehicles, to name a few. We’ve established a relationship with Harwin over the last few years to become their digital partner, pushing their digital presence to new levels and enabling their business to grow through a powerful, fully integrated website.We continue to work with Harwin to push and develop their Salesforce website integration, always looking for growth opportunities and areas of improvement.

Bespoke Salesforce integration for one of the world's leading connector manufacturers.

Bespoke Salesforce integration, 90% reduction in page load times and a 97% decrease in filter interaction time for one of the world's leading connector manufacturers.

An app for

cyclists to log

close passes

Close Pass

For cyclists, few experiences are scarier than a vehicle passing too close on the roads. To help keep the cycling community safe, we designed and built an app that lets cyclists log locations of near-miss incidents, or close passes.

The Problem

Built with React Native as a hybrid app, Close Pass gave us a chance to experiment with new technologies and custom integrations. We used a community version of Mapbox for custom mapping features and TypeScript to enhance code consistency and reliability.To prevent misuse, we implemented a robust registration and validation system that stops users from logging false close passes.

The Solution

Since launching the Close Pass app, we’ve had nearly 1,000 close passes logged all over the world. We’ve got big plans for the future, too, including 3D mapping, turn-by-turn navigation and much more.You can read more about <a href="https://sidigital.co/lab-notes/introducing-close-pass">Close Pass in our Lab Note</a>.If you're a cyclist, Close Pass is a must-have app. Try it out by downloading from the <a href="https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/close-pass/id6450953209" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">App Store for iOS</a> or <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.closepass&pcampaignid=web_share" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Google Play Store for Android</a>.

The Result

Shoot Walter White

in our hack project game

Breaking Bad Shooter

Breaking Bad was an iconic TV series, drawing a massive 10.3 million viewers for the finale in 2013. As huge fans of the show, we couldn’t resist paying tribute to the show by designing and building our very own interactive mini-shooter game.

We started by illustrating Walter White, the oil drums, and the desert backdrop, which we then integrated into a complete scene. Once we had this finalised, we moved on to development. To make the game enjoyable and captivating, we kept the gameplay as straightforward as possible. Players could attempt to shoot Walter, but they would lose points if they hit the oil drums filled with money. They had a limited time of 60 seconds to accumulate as many points as possible.

We launched this game at the opportune moment, just before the 2013 finale aired. We captured the moment with an incredibly simple, enjoyable game that was also highly shareable.The game gained recognition by being featured in publications like <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/josephbernstein/this-breaking-bad-computer-game-lets-you-shoot-walter-white" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Buzzfeed</a> and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/technolog/breaking-bad-game-lets-you-do-what-jesse-pinkman-wouldnt-8c11323113" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">NBC News</a>.If you’re interested in trying your hand at playing as Walter White, you can <a href="https://sidigital.co/breakingbad" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">do so here</a>.

Bespoke Case

Management System

Bespoke Case Management System

A toy and game company that collaborates with hundreds of professional inventors required a comprehensive case management system to monitor the progress of submissions and store related documents digitally. The custom software system was designed to significantly enhance their efficiency in managing the entire process, from beginning to end.

After a thorough discovery phase, we gathered all the needs and requirements from different departments and users of the system. This included managing access rights and privileges, centralising information, and simplifying group communications.We created a completely custom software system to make the process smoother and more reliable. We also consulted with them on additional features like digital signing and storage, which added extra value to the project.

We created a totally unique system for them, and it’s become a key part of how they run their business. It’s allowed them to handle more submissions and save valuable time on admin. We continue to maintain and build new features for their system.

The Results

A bespoke platform to allow the public to submit toy invention ideas.

Have you ever dreamed of creating the next big toy or game? Hasbro wanted to make that dream possible, so they asked us to create a platform where anyone with a great idea could share their toy and game inventions directly with Hasbro. Unlike other major toy companies that typically only work with professional inventors, Hasbro wanted to open their doors to everyone with creativity and imagination.We were given complete creative freedom to shape everything from the direction and branding to the visual design of the platform. We created a inspiring and welcoming space that would inspire inventors from all walks of life to share their toy ideas with Hasbro.

Hasbro

Hasbro’s new platform needed to integrate with the existing professional inventors platform we’d built for them.

To make things simple and streamlined, we wanted to create one central place where Hasbro could review all their invention submissions—whether they came from amateurs or professionals. We’d already created a special platform for professional inventors, so we simply expanded it to welcome amateur submissions too. When someone submits their invention idea, it goes through to an external inventor management platform for review. If their idea shows promise, it gets added right alongside submissions from professional inventors, giving everyone a fair chance to share their creativity with Hasbro.

Established in 1923, Hasbro are one of the worlds largest children’s toy manufacturers, with brands such as Monopoly, Dungeons & Dragons and Peppa Pig part of their vast portfolio.We’re been working with Hasbro for over a decade, and we continue to work with them to allow inventors and creators across the globe to submit their creations to Hasbro, allowing their portfolio of games to continue to grow.

Building a custom software platform for one of the world's largest toy manufacturers. 

Building a custom software platform for one of the world's largest toy manufacturers.

Custom

Magento

Development

Advanced Magento Customisation

Boadicea the Victorious are and exclusive perfume company, providing exquisite scents in elegant bottles to customers worldwide. They're known not only for their fragrances but also for their elegant bottles.To offer an enhanced gift experience, Boadicea wanted to give their customers the ability to create truly unique bottles by customising nearly every component—all while integrating seamlessly with their existing Magento platform.

We built a fully customisable bottle configuration tool that users could use directly on the Boadicea website. Users can customise everything from bottle colour, decorative shield and stopper, so the variations were nearly endless. To solve this, we found a way to create image as it the user built the bottle. Although this was a tricky technical challenge, it was a key part of the configurator, and an important output for social sharing.

From day one, the bottle configurator was a hit. Not only did it generate valuable sales, but it also drove a huge amount of brand traction and website traffic thanks to its unique social sharing function.

Integrating & Optimising

Salesforce Data

for Harwin

Integrating & Optimising Salesforce Data for Harwin

Harwin needed a super-smooth and lightning-fast way to connect their product data with their new website, using Salesforce as the main data source.But they couldn’t just use the Salesforce API directly because it was too slow and had some substantial limitations.

We worked with Harwin to develop custom middleware to get product data from Salesforce and put it in ElasticSearch, bypassing the limitation of the direct Salesforce API.The middleware development involved the creation of a robust API to serve data quickly to the frontend, which also means that Salesforce remained the single source of data.

Harwin’s internal product management processes have been dramatically streamlined as a result of all this. For their customers, this means they have access to the latest product information delivered swiftly through the website. Read our <a href="https://sidigital.co/work/harwin">full case study</a> to find out more.

Our new integration with Salesforce has transformed our internal processes, meaning we can focus less on admin and more on our customers and products.

What They Said

An office robot

played with by

half a million people

Sid the office robot

At Si digital, we’re always on the lookout for new and exciting ways to learn new things. So we thought we would build a robot you could control over the internet. We called him Sid.

The robotics were purchased online, but needed a few customisations to function within the limitations of our arena. We constructed a queuing system to manage the influx of individuals eager to participate. We set up two live-streaming camera feeds to showcase the action to the player, and created a scoring system to add a competitive element to the game play.

People from all over the world queued for hours just to play with Sid. He continued playing for two whole months and was played over 500,000 times. His profile was featured on YouTube by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbVAKs1hF5o" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Vsauce</a> (with 4 million followers) and <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/3022056/this-office-has-its-own-robot-and-you-can-control-it-from-your-computer" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">FastCo</a>, which resulted in a massive influx of traffic and gameplay.

Work

Bespoke Salesforce integration for one of the world's leading connector manufacturers.

Mini Case Study

Close Pass

Mini Case Study

Breaking Bad Shooter

Mini Case Study

Bespoke Case Management System

Building a custom software platform for one of the world's largest toy manufacturers.

Mini Case Study

Advanced Magento Customisation

Mini Case Study

Integrating & Optimising Salesforce Data for Harwin

Mini Case Study

Sid the office robot

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