01
2.7×
Why it matters
Where custom builds go wrong.
02
1 in 3
03
60%
04
40+ hrs/yr
How we work
The 6–10 week build.
Weeks 1–2
01 · Discovery
We sit with your team. Map the workflow, the language, the edges. Output: signed scope doc + system map + prioritized risk register.
Weeks 2–3
02 · Design & prototype
Interactive prototypes — not specs. You click through the system before it’s built. Output: clickable Figma, demo walkthrough, costed change-log.
Weeks 3–8
03 · Build & weekly demos
Real software every Friday. Your team uses it as it’s built. Output: weekly working build, release notes, defect tracker.
Weeks 8–10
04 · Launch & handover
Live system, trained team, documented codebase. Output: GitHub repo transferred to your org, runbook, handover demo.
Built onNext.js · Postgres · AWS — or your stack of choice
What you get
What you walk away with.
Every system ships with what you actually need on day one — not bolted-on later, not behind a future upsell.
- Operations dashboards built around your KPIs
- Field and mobile apps that work offline
- Client and customer portals
- Internal management tools that replace 2–3 SaaS subscriptions
- Integrations with your existing stack — no Zapier glue
- Full source code, transferred to your GitHub on day 1
- Documentation, trained team, signed handover demo
Examples
Built for what you actually run.
Stylized previews — examples of what we ship, not specific client work
Decision framework
Build, buy, or hire?
Category
Buy SaaS
Hire developer
FutureLine
Speed to live
Days to a generic instance.
6–18 months — recruit, ramp, build.
6–10 weeks. Committed up front, not a rolling estimate.
Cost shape
Recurring fee, every year. Forever.
Salary + benefits + recruiter fee. Every year.
45–75% cheaper than SaaS over 3 years. Paid once, owned forever.
Fit to your team
30–60%. Built for everyone. Fits no one perfectly.
60–90%. Depends on who you hire.
99%+. Shaped around your day-to-day from day one.
Ownership
0%. Vendor owns the code, the roadmap, the data model.
Varies. Depends on the contract.
100%. Source code transferred to your GitHub on day 1.
Risk when things go wrong
Vendor sunsets, raises prices, kills features — you migrate or you’re stuck.
Single point of failure. Devs leave, codebase orphaned.
Documented, supported, owned. You can hire anyone to maintain it.
AI readiness
Limited to whatever AI features the vendor decides to bolt on.
Depends on the dev. AI integration adds months and risk.
Your data, your structure, AI-ready from day 1. Plug in any model.
The engagement
We do the work. You own the result.
What we do
- Map your workflow and write down what success looks like
- Design and prototype — clickable demo before any code ships
- Build with weekly Friday demos — no long silences, no surprise reveals
- Test, document, train — handover demo signed off by your team lead
- You own the GitHub repo, infrastructure, and credentials — from day 1, not handover
What you do
Discovery — your operations lead walks us through the workflow
Weeks 1–2 · ~3 hrs/week
Demo feedback — review each Friday build, flag what’s off
Weeks 3–8 · ~1 hr/week
Sign-off moments — scope, design, launch
Throughout · 3 × ~30 min
Training — your admin learns the system end-to-end
Week 10 · ~4 hrs total
Total ask
~17 hours of your team’s time, across 10 weeks.
By the numbers
What clients gain.
6–10 wks
Time to launch
Most builds live in 6–10 weeks. Committed up front — not a rolling estimate.
12 mo
ROI window
Most clients recover the build cost within 12 months of go-live.
$0
Recurring licence fees
You own the code. No subscription tax, ever.
100%
Yours, forever
Source code, documentation, infrastructure — transferred outright on handover.
Where it fits
Built for your industry.
Oil & Gas
Custom HSE platforms and contractor management — replace 2–3 SaaS subscriptions with one system your field teams actually use.
Construction
Project management and snag tracking built for the foreman — without the Procore subscription or the bolted-on workarounds.
Government & Public Sector
Citizen portals and case-management tools that meet compliance and ship faster than the framework-vendor route — owned, not rented.
Education & Training
Student portals and LMS platforms built around your curriculum — no Moodle force-fit, no per-seat pricing as you grow.
SMEs Scaling Fast
Custom CRMs and operations dashboards that grow with you — without the per-seat tax that punishes hiring.
Common questions
Things we hear.
Compare it against 3 years of SaaS fees for tools that don’t fit. Most clients recover the build cost within 12 months — and then pay nothing year-on-year. We also offer phased delivery so the investment is spread across the build timeline.
Most builds land between $25k–$120k depending on scope, integrations, and complexity. We commit to a fixed price after the free audit — no rolling estimates, no surprise invoices. Phased delivery means you can spread the investment across the build, and most clients recover the build cost inside 12 months of go-live. From then on, your operating cost is $0 — you own the code.
They always do — and we build for it. Our process runs weekly demos and prototyping before coding, so you’re always reviewing working software, not specs on paper. Changes caught early cost almost nothing.
Your code lives in your GitHub organisation from day one. We’re a collaborator during the build; you’re the owner at handover. There’s no FutureLine-owned "master copy" — what’s in your repo IS the software.
Hiring is 6–18 months from advert to productive output, plus salary, benefits, and the risk of them leaving. A freelancer is cheap but a single point of failure. We’re a small team with a documented process, a defined budget, and a handover plan. The output is yours; we’re not.
You have a documented, supported codebase — not a black box. We offer support packages and can train your own technical staff to maintain the system. You’re never dependent on us to keep the lights on.
Most projects go live in 6–10 weeks depending on complexity. We commit to a delivery timeline before we start — not a rolling estimate. If we miss it, we own it.
06 — Start
Stop renting. Own.
Live in 6–10 weeks. Yours forever. Start with a free audit — we’ll map your stack, find what’s costing you most, and tell you what’s worth building yourself (and what isn’t).