2_DiscoverBenelux_Issue21_Sep_2015_Q9_Scan Magazine 1 28/08/2015 20:46 Page 44
Discover Benelux | Best of Dutch Digital Design | CODE
Loving the challenge The online possibilities seem endless, and the techniques are improving at a rapid speed. The Dutch company CODE has been unravelling the most difficult technical issues for over a decade and has created some remarkable projects. TEXT: BERTHE VAN DEN HURK | PHOTOS: CODE
“We love the challenge, it keeps us focused, and there is always something new to learn,” says Bob Rockland, CEO of CODE. CODE is a technically oriented internet agency, meaning that they develop web applications like tablet apps, backend applications and supporting the administration or content management of websites. CODE provides the technical architecture and implementation, as well as maintaining and expanding the completed projects. They work together with multiple internet agencies that are specialised in design and interaction, to make numerous and diverse projects very successful. Each project is looked at individually, to create the best solutions for the client. Rockland: “We use two very different kinds of content management systems (CMS), each with its
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own advantages and disadvantages. We created our own (closed-source) product, but also use Drupal (open-source). On the basis of the assignment, we select the most suitable solution together with the customer.” One of the projects CODE is very proud of is europeanurology.com; a website that publishes peer-reviewed original articles, state-of-the-art reviews and opinion editorials on a wide range of urological problems. Rockland: “We have created the software to convert the source files into HTML, in one go. Between 100 and 200 articles can be uploaded every day. It is of vital importance that no errors are made, after all, medical decisions are based upon these articles.” Rockland: “It’s very important to keep our
knowledge up to date constantly. We have our own database, with everything we’ve ever done or learned. This way CODE can work quickly and in a neat and accessible manner.” CODE loves to help improve the web interaction and navigation. It also organises weekly knowledge sessions; a member of staff gets the opportunity to tell the rest of the team something about a technical subject. This does not have to be something CODE would necessarily do as a project. Rockland: “Usually we schedule this for about a half an hour at the end of the week, but it’s not uncommon for it to last much longer. This is a great way for the team to collaborate and share their knowledge, since knowledge and skills are the core foundations our work is built on.” www.code.nl