Custom apps that work where your team works

An app pays off when it solves something that can't be solved at a computer: the technician closing a visit in a basement, the driver confirming delivery at the customer's door, the employee clocking in at the plant entrance. At Intway we build custom mobile apps for Android, iOS and web, connected to the systems your company already uses. This page explains what a custom app is, when it makes sense, how we approach it and what drives its cost.

What a custom app is (and isn't)

It is an application designed for a specific process in your company: who uses it, where, with what data and what happens next. It isn't a generic app with your logo, or a website wrapped inside an app. What makes it valuable is everything you don't see: that it works with no signal, that it sends data to the right system and that the person using it in the field understands it without training.

When it makes sense

• People work away from a computer: technicians, drivers, sales reps, inspectors, healthcare staff.
• The data is created on site and today it is written on paper or in WhatsApp and entered later.
• You need the phone itself: camera, barcode scanner, GPS, on-screen signature, notifications.
• You already tried an off-the-shelf app and it doesn't fit your process or doesn't work where your team works.

When it doesn't

If your users work from an office, or only need to check information now and then, a well-built web application is usually enough and costs less: no store publishing, nothing to install. For customers who log in to see invoices or orders, see the self-service portal.

Do you have a field team still working on paper? Tell us how the process works today and we'll tell you whether an app solves it.

Custom app, off-the-shelf app or web: what fits each need

How we approach it

The place where it is used comes first

Before designing screens we go and see where the app will be used: a machine room, a road, a plant entrance. If there's no signal there, the app is designed to work offline from day one: it stores everything on the phone and syncs on its own when the network comes back. We explain it in detail in apps that work with no signal.

One codebase for Android and iOS

We work with React Native: the same codebase serves Android, iOS and, when needed, a fixed tablet. When a feature needs something specific to the operating system, that one part is solved with native code, without rebuilding the whole app.

The app is the tip: there's a system behind it

An app on its own isn't enough. Behind it there's an API that receives the data, validates each operation and records it only once, a web panel for the office and the integration with your management system, so what is entered in the field reaches invoicing or stock without being retyped.

Publishing and maintenance

We publish on Google Play and the App Store and, on every release, check both stores' current requirements, which change every year. The developer accounts should be in your company's name: the app is yours.

Real cases

How much does it cost to build an app?

It depends on a few things, and it helps to know them before asking for a quote:

• What the first version does: how many screens and flows go into the first stage.
• Whether it must work with no signal: it adds work on syncing and conflicts.
• Integrations: with your management system, payments, maps or other services.
• Phone features: camera, barcode scanner, signature, face recognition.
• Web panel and backend: almost always needed, and they weigh as much as the app.
• Platforms: Android only, or Android, iOS and web.

We quote in stages, starting with a small first version that is already used in the field. How we build that estimate is in how to estimate a software project. For a concrete proposal, get in touch.

Examples by industry

Maintenance and field service

Work orders on the technician's phone, with each unit's history, checklist, photos, spare parts and customer signature, even when the equipment is in a basement. See software for maintenance and field service.

Logistics and transport

A driver app with the route sheet, proof of delivery with a signed delivery note and photo, and delay alerts, connected to the trip system. See software for logistics and transportation and the guide to transportation management software.

Healthcare

Home visit records, medication control in care homes or patient appointments, with role-based permissions and protected sensitive data. See healthcare software.

Banking and financial services

Mobile channels connected to the core through a service layer, with two-factor authentication and a log of every operation. See software for banking and financial services.

Common mistakes

• Designing in the office for use in the field. If it isn't tested where it's used, it fails there.
• Leaving offline mode for later. Adding it at the end costs much more than building it in from the start.
• Copying the paper form as is. It's the chance to keep only what is actually used.
• An isolated app. If the data doesn't reach the management system, someone types it in again.
• Forgetting maintenance. Stores and operating systems change every year.