Transformational middleware solution

Transformational middleware that uses API integrations to provide a slick, contemporary alternative to aged, clunky solutions, saving 1000’s of yearly admin hours for our national H&F client.

Sector.

Fitness & Leisure, Omnichannel Retail

Product description.

Back Office middleware system that integrates multiple third-party software using API technology

Technologies.

NET 6
Angular 13
entity framework 6
Web API/MVC
Various 3rd party API integrations

Decrease in various system downtime

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Manual back-office admin hours saved

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Health & Fitness products managed

Systems and Tools integrated via API

The challenge.

How do we quickly enhance various systems to achieve a large number of low hanging fruit, digital opportunities.

As Parkwood Leisure (PL)’s trusted Software Development agency, ioSTUDIOS has a long-standing relationship with the national leisure operator – supporting the progression and implementation of its digital roadmap for the last twelve years.

Together we recognised that a range of the commercial, developmental, performance and admin related opportunities on the roadmap had similar causes and therefore could be solved efficiently within the remit of a single project. For example, data in multiple systems was in a format that couldn’t be read across all platforms used across the organisation’s digital portfolio.

Alongside this, a lack in integration meant that the performance of certain digital functions (both commercial and administrative) were slow and cumbersome.

By finding a solution to these challenges, a whole host of benefits, software projects/builds and progression would be unlocked!

With this in mind, Parkwood Leisure wanted a solution that a range of its existing systems could integrate with in order to:

Provide an integration piece that ultimately would unlock blocked projects on the digital roadmap
Improve the speed and loading times of commercial digital journeys and functionality
Provide admin functions to reduce monthly SLA support from agency development teams
Reduce manual, digital admin time and errors

The solution.

Develop and implement ‘Core’ a new piece of middleware software.

ioSTUDIOS completed an extensive discovery exercise with PL’s digital team – as part of this workshops were conducted with a range of PL stakeholders in order to fully understand the detail of the challenge across the organisation. This approach would provide the knowledge required to create a solution that worked best for all user groups across the business.

After collaborative discussions between ioSTUDIOS and PL, a new middleware piece of software named ‘Core’ was agreed. Core would use APIs to integrate data from various systems into one platform and provide a host of benefits, including performance improvements, a reduction in manual admin time and errors, and improvement in staff morale.

Core would also provide a location in which new digital management modules across PL’s digital estate could be added in the future. And, unlike some of the existing third party systems being deployed, the entire platform – including its screens and functions – was built using UI and UX best practices, creating a system that looked contemporary and was easy to use.

Core acts as middleware software, creating a range of efficiencies and improvements by enhancing data integrity and reducing data duplication via API. Specifically, Core helps integrate the following systems and tools.

Core was also built using microservices; a digital infrastructure solution that allows systems to work together – but fail in isolation. Thus, if one aspect of the system is compromised, the remaining systems and software remain unaffected, allowing for greater clarity for fixes, and faster repair response – with downtime reduced by 95%.

Key Integrations

Primary customer website and CMS
Primary eComm website layer
CRM system
Health & Fitness management system
Golf Course management system
Outdoor Activity management system
Theatre management system
Payment system

The result.

This new piece of middleware provided Parkwood Leisure with a range of different benefits and achievements, such as:

Unlocking – items on PL’s development roadmap that would otherwise have been blocked are now unlocked and are possible, including integrating with a new payment provider and improving the primary checkout journey and customer contact form on it’s primary customer facing website. This has provided benefits commercially, logistically and digitally.

Admin time decrease – reduction in admin time as Core allows digital admin tasks to be completed in a more efficient and streamlined fashion. As PL’s facility portfolio comprises of 80+ businesses nationwide, digital admin/setup work can be large, so this represents a considerable amount of time saved.

Reduced downtime – a new API status dashboard and the use of microservices splits the current infrastructure into logical chunks to provide better redundancy and resilience resulting in potential downtime being significantly reduced.

Performance improvements – due to Core providing data efficiently and accurately, a variety of systems and digital functions have seen improvements in loading times and speed from a technical performance point of view.

ioSTUDIOS are easy to work with and are flexible in their approach – which means we’ve been allowed to tailor the relationship to work optimally for us. This has led to a natural feeling, organic working relationship that is engaging and enjoyable to be part of.

This has led to a continuous stream of success over the last few years, inc. a couple of nationally recognised, industry awards! I’d highly recommend.

sean odger

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