System optimisation
Fine-tuning systems, software, databases and networks for speed and reliability, with tested backups, practical recovery plans and redundancy where it matters.
IT problems solved Bespoke apps and automation AI integrated securely
I'm a web architect and developer. I've spent three decades designing, building, delivering and looking after systems across networks, cloud, apps and more recently AI.
You deal with me directly, from the first conversation through to delivery and ongoing care.
Services
AI & automation
Connect your systems and bring AI into everyday work, handling repetitive tasks, making sense of information and helping people make better decisions. Designed around your business and refined as you use it.
For bespoke AI agents, visit XY Agent (opens in a new tab).
Google Workspace
Get more from Gmail, Drive, shared files and access controls. Bespoke tools and integrations via the Workspace APIs that go beyond what Workspace does out of the box. See more at Armstrong Technology (opens in a new tab).
Support & maintenance
Updates, security patches, backups and ongoing improvements, handled by me. For AI systems, I review models, tooling, connectors and running costs, keeping your setup current.
How it works
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Free call
We talk through what you use, what isn't working and what you want. No pitch.
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Written scope and price
I put what I will do and what it costs in writing before any work starts.
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The work
I do the work on your systems, apps and AI, and where needed on your local setup, and keep you informed.
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Handover
You get a walkthrough and notes on what changed, so you are not dependent on me.
Project examples
30 projects across five areas.
AI & automation
Using artificial intelligence, foundation models, local models, tooling, harnesses and agents to deliver technical objectives.
Built
Automation dashboard
One dashboard to monitor AI, cloud and tool spending across projects.
Delivery, outcome and status: Automation dashboard
Delivery. Designed and built a dashboard that combines usage and billing information with project-level cost tracking, spending alerts and forecasts.
Outcome. Makes it easier to see where the money is going.
Status. Built
In development
Area research for property decisions
An area-research tool that brings together a wide range of location-specific information, from property values and ownership costs to demographics, safety, environment, climate, amenities, planning and local character.
Delivery, outcome and status: Area research for property decisions
Delivery. Designing and building a system that combines official and geographic data across those areas and presents that context alongside property listings, including through a browser extension. Travel times to essential services are already in place.
Outcome. The aim is to give someone a full picture of an area, so they can compare places and decide with more than a listing in front of them.
Status. In development
In development
Product idea validation
An in-depth research and validation system for new product ideas. It does more than gather possibilities: it examines an idea thoroughly, checking whether a real market exists, who would buy, how people already look for a solution, what competitors offer, and whether the commercial case is strong enough to justify building. Ideas are challenged and refined so that only well-founded propositions move forward.
Delivery, outcome and status: Product idea validation
Delivery. Designing and building a system that produces a structured assessment of each idea, covering market evidence, customer need, how the idea would be found, the competitive landscape and commercial credibility, with a clear view of whether to proceed, reshape the idea, or set it aside.
Outcome. Better-informed decisions about what to build. Weak ideas are caught earlier, promising ones are sharpened, and less effort is spent starting products on uncertain ground.
Status. In development. The system is being built and tested for internal use, and is not yet a finished public product.
Built
AI opportunity finder
Enter a UK company name and get a plain-English report on where AI and automation could help, based on public filings and digital footprint checks.
xyagent.ai (opens in a new tab)
Delivery, outcome and status: AI opportunity finder
Delivery. Designed and built a public web tool that pulls Companies House data, cross-checks online presence and drafts an opportunity report.
Outcome. A fast first pass on where a UK business might gain from AI, still being improved.
Status. Built, and still being refined.
Prototype
Leadership assessment and development diagnostic
A conversational assessment that evaluates interview responses against an established competency framework, produces documented feedback and suggests an individual training plan.
Delivery, outcome and status: Leadership assessment and development diagnostic
Delivery. Designed and built a prototype that assesses both individual development needs and patterns across staff interviews.
Outcome. Helps identify capability gaps across the business, rather than treating each interview in isolation.
Status. Prototype
Apps & business systems
Web apps and internal systems for admin, evidence, planning, reporting and day-to-day work.
Delivered and supported
Government contract administration and management
A web platform that administered government-funded return-to-work programmes, tracking participants, plans, reviews, attendance and audit evidence, and working out funding claims.
Delivery, outcome and status: Government contract administration and management
Delivery. Designed and specified the platform and directed its development, with weekly releases driven by frontline staff feedback. It covered the full participant lifecycle, rolling programme milestones, individual learning plans, automated alerts and reconciliation of funding claims.
Outcome. Became the daily operating platform for a large frontline team over several years, supporting major government contracts.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Safe storage for coursework video
After local storage failures risked student assessment files, coursework video went straight to the cloud with Google sign-in, automatic permissions and an audit trail.
Delivery, outcome and status: Safe storage for coursework video
Delivery. Designed and built a cloud upload path on auto-scaling hosting, Google sign-in, direct streaming into Google Drive, permission rules and transactional audit logging to Sheets.
Outcome. Standardised media collection across sites and removed reliance on local USB storage for graded video.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Staffing cost planning
A web tool that let leaders model staffing costs against changing funding.
Delivery, outcome and status: Staffing cost planning
Delivery. Designed and built a hybrid cloud web application connecting HR data with models of staffing delivery cost against shifting funding bands.
Outcome. Leaders could test staffing plans against funding changes before committing.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Sign-offs that don't get lost
A web platform for tracking actions, delegation and sign-off that used to live in email chains.
Delivery, outcome and status: Sign-offs that don't get lost
Delivery. Designed, built and supported a workflow engine with structured delegation and sign-off milestones aligned to strategic goals.
Outcome. Replaced unmanaged email chains with a clear audit trail of who owed what.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Reporting the official dashboards missed
A reporting layer that surfaced detailed progress data and early warning signs on top of mandatory government systems.
Delivery, outcome and status: Reporting the official dashboards missed
Delivery. Designed and built a reporting overlay on required government databases, highlighting progression gaps and intervention triggers.
Outcome. Regional teams could see gaps earlier than the standard dashboards allowed.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Venue: websites, ticketing and guest sign-ups
Websites, ticketing, automated guest sign-up emails and guest Wi-Fi for a new venue.
Delivery, outcome and status: Venue: websites, ticketing and guest sign-ups
Delivery. Designed and delivered high-throughput web hosting, ticketing partner widgets, and automation pipelines into sheets and email tools, alongside guest Wi-Fi for the venue.
Outcome. Public site, ticketing and guest capture worked as one flow for launch.
Status. Delivered and supported
Prototype
Season ticket sharing without the group chat chaos
A web app for private seat syndicates: fixture changes spotted automatically, fair queues, a points ledger and calendar feeds.
Delivery, outcome and status: Season ticket sharing without the group chat chaos
Delivery. Designed and built a Next.js app with authenticated accounts, fixture polling, invitation queues with expiry windows, a fair points ledger, payments links, reliability scoring and subscribable calendars.
Outcome. Syndicate admin moves out of endless group messages into one shared system.
Status. Prototype
Built
Keyboard-first tasks for complex builds
A power-user task system for software builds and agent workflows: notes per task, progress, re-ordering and calendar views.
Delivery, outcome and status: Keyboard-first tasks for complex builds
Delivery. Re-architected an earlier concept into a modern web app with multi-note tasks, drag re-sequencing, dual chronological/sequence views, file and doc links, speech capture and multi-month calendar navigation, with hooks for agent tooling.
Outcome. One place to drive complex build checklists without losing context.
Status. Built
Built
Habit tracking with AI-assisted routines
A habit formation web app with modern front-end tooling and hooks for automated testing and daily accountability routines.
Delivery, outcome and status: Habit tracking with AI-assisted routines
Delivery. Designed and built a Next.js habit platform with browser automation tooling for testing and AI-assisted daily routines.
Outcome. Uses proven psychological habit-forming techniques to help people build systems rather than goals.
Status. Built
Built
AI personal trainer for kettlebell training
An AI tool that stands in for a personal trainer on a structured kettlebell programme, with live video and feedback on exercise form and advice on how to improve.
Delivery, outcome and status: AI personal trainer for kettlebell training
Delivery. Designed and built a mobile-first app for structured kettlebell programming, including set and rep tracking, rest intervals and ladder progressions, plus live video and feedback that captures exercise form and advises on improvement.
Outcome. Gives the structure, form guidance and progression of a personal kettlebell trainer, so you don't need to hire one for that programme.
Status. Built
Prototype
Busy maps
A map-based tool that shows footfall, density and congestion patterns, useful for visits, travel and event operations, not only for picking a quieter or busier moment.
Delivery, outcome and status: Busy maps
Delivery. Designing and building a spatial analytics app to visualise how busy places are, including footfall, crowd density and congestion, so the patterns can be used in planning as well as in day-to-day timing.
Outcome. Intended to make activity and congestion in an area visible on a map, so decisions can be based on what is happening, not guesswork.
Status. Prototype
Delivered and supported
Timetables that spot clashes
A scheduling platform linking courses, rooms, tutors and learners with automated clash detection.
Delivery, outcome and status: Timetables that spot clashes
Delivery. Designed and built a relational scheduling system bridged to existing markbooks and VLE modules.
Outcome. Room and tutor clashes were caught before they hit the timetable.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Inspection findings in one tracker
A central web log of inspection findings, owners and corrective milestones with deadline escalations.
Delivery, outcome and status: Inspection findings in one tracker
Delivery. Designed, built and supported a group-wide audit tracker covering external inspection findings and remedial actions.
Outcome. Corrective work had clear owners and dates instead of scattered spreadsheets.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
National learning tools kept in sync
Nationwide rollouts of electronic learning plans and maths/English diagnostics, with curriculum resources consolidated onto a hardened VLE.
Delivery, outcome and status: National learning tools kept in sync
Delivery. Managed national rollouts and sync pipelines for e-learning plan and diagnostic tools, and consolidated curriculum resources onto Moodle.
Outcome. Sites shared one pattern for ILPs, diagnostics and curriculum content.
Status. Delivered and supported
Google Workspace & cloud
Moving email, files and line-of-business systems onto Google Workspace or dedicated cloud hosting.
Delivered and supported
Enterprise migration to Workspace
Ageing servers retired and a multi-site organisation moved onto Google Workspace, with simpler browser-based PCs.
Delivery, outcome and status: Enterprise migration to Workspace
Delivery. Designed and led migration of a large multi-entity user base from on-premise mail and file servers to Google Workspace, and shifted campus PCs toward lightweight encrypted terminals over HTTPS as part of a wider compliance programme.
Outcome. One cloud home for mail and files, with less local server hardware to replace.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered and supported
Moving a core system to the cloud
A key management information system moved to dedicated cloud hosting, with service levels and retention agreed.
Delivery, outcome and status: Moving a core system to the cloud
Delivery. Managed migration of a core MIS suite to dedicated cloud hosting with agreed uptime, patching and long-term audit data retention.
Outcome. Statutory data sat on supported cloud infrastructure instead of ageing on-site kit.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered
Agency migration to Google Workspace
A creative agency moved to a new domain on Google Workspace, including terabytes of video stored locally, without losing Drive permissions, calendars or live client work.
Delivery, outcome and status: Agency migration to Google Workspace
Delivery. Designed and delivered a phased tenant-to-tenant Google Workspace migration: mail dual-run and forwarding, Drive project libraries, calendars and contacts, MX cutover, Mac desktop sync conflict fixes, and migration of a large locally stored video store into the new Workspace.
Outcome. Brand and domain change completed with mail and files still usable throughout.
Status. Delivered
Delivered
Leaving a heavy MSP for Google Workspace
A peer network left an over-complicated managed setup: SharePoint and Office 365 moved to Google Workspace, DNS and mail auth fixed, local Wi-Fi simplified.
Delivery, outcome and status: Leaving a heavy MSP for Google Workspace
Delivery. Audited the incumbent setup, planned an orderly exit, provisioned Google Workspace with alias domains, moved Shared Drive data off SharePoint, migrated mail/calendar/contacts with catch-up passes, set SPF/DKIM/DMARC, and moved Wi-Fi onto a local controller while retiring unnecessary edge hardware.
Outcome. Simpler Mac-friendly workflow, clearer mail delivery and less dependence on the old managed stack.
Status. Delivered
Delivered
Design studio onto Google Workspace
A brand studio moved from fragmented hosting and IMAP mail onto Google Workspace, with Mac setups standardised.
Delivery, outcome and status: Design studio onto Google Workspace
Delivery. Audited and migrated mail, calendars and contacts to Google Workspace, standardised macOS creative workstations and set SPF/DKIM.
Outcome. One shared cloud mail and calendar setup for the studio.
Status. Delivered
Networks & connectivity
Site links, Wi-Fi, phone systems and connectivity audits across one site or many.
Delivered and supported
Enterprise infrastructure design and build
Every site audited, a phased plan, separate staff and guest networks, and old phone lines moved to internet calling.
Delivery, outcome and status: Enterprise infrastructure design and build
Delivery. Designed and led a multi-year programme of dedicated circuits and private wide-area links across UK sites: remapped subnets, security perimeters, tagged VLANs to separate student and admin traffic, modern Wi-Fi, and hosted SIP replacing legacy PBX lines. Worked with connectivity partners for the circuits.
Outcome. Fewer network helpdesk tickets and lower ongoing line and call costs.
Status. Delivered and supported
Delivered
Shop connectivity and telecoms audit
Dual-premises retail connectivity reviewed: leased lines, backup circuits, alarm paths and multi-account billing.
Delivery, outcome and status: Shop connectivity and telecoms audit
Delivery. Audited commercial internet, backup lines, emergency alarm circuits and billing profiles across two retail premises, then recommended a cleaner setup.
Outcome. Contract and connectivity discrepancies were visible and costs easier to challenge.
Status. Delivered
Delivered
Telephony routing check
A forensic look at call routing and call-data records for a training provider.
Delivery, outcome and status: Telephony routing check
Delivery. Analysed telephony routing and call data verification with specialist call-analytics tooling.
Outcome. Routing and recording gaps were documented for the client to act on.
Status. Delivered
Buildings & security
Cabling, access control, CCTV and building networks for venues and estates, designed and led.
Delivered
Full infrastructure design and build
Structured cabling across several floors, separate secure networks for staff, security, card payments and guests, and support for live gig streaming.
Delivery, outcome and status: Full infrastructure design and build
Delivery. Designed and led structured cabling and segmented networks for a multi-floor heritage venue (staff, payments, security/CCTV and guest Wi-Fi), including the network path for live gig streaming. Others carried out physical installation to that design.
Outcome. One clear network plan separating day-to-day work, payments, security and guests.
Status. Delivered
Delivered
Venue: lighting control on the building network
Auditorium architectural lighting brought onto a dedicated building LAN after wireless interference problems.
Delivery, outcome and status: Venue: lighting control on the building network
Delivery. Diagnosed radio interference affecting a large ceiling lamp install, then designed network integration and addressing for lighting controllers and nodes so control ran over the building LAN. Worked with the lighting specialists; installation of fixtures was theirs.
Outcome. Lighting control sat on a stable wired path instead of a crowded wireless band.
Status. Delivered
Delivered and supported
Wedding venue infrastructure and full IT suite
A wedding venue given a full IT setup: bookings, a customer-facing website, operations tools, wireless links between buildings and CCTV.
Delivery, outcome and status: Wedding venue infrastructure and full IT suite
Delivery. Designed and built a bespoke CRM; designed and delivered point-to-point wireless with powered outdoor links, PTZ cameras and rack tidy-ups; rebuilt the customer-facing website and built a bespoke operations tool for managing events and customer data.
Outcome. Bookings, site links and visitor-facing web worked as one supported setup.
Status. Delivered and supported
Let's look at your setup together
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