The Software House was chosen to rebuild an acquired fiber-optic communication management platform that was blocking business growth due to poor performance and legacy architecture.
GOconnectIT acquired a promising startup to expand their software portfolio for the cables and pipelines industry. The application looked good on paper but quickly revealed serious problems: slow performance, limited scalability, and a legacy codebase that developers refused to touch. The company needed to modernize the platform while keeping it operational for 25,000+ active users.
Partnership goal:
→ Transform a problematic legacy application into a modern, scalable platform that enables continuous feature development without compromising business operations.
GOconnetIT
GOconnectIT is an international corporation providing smart software solutions, project management, and legal advice for the cables and pipelines industry. With 20 years of experience, they work with excavators and network operators across Europe to ensure operational efficiency and support infrastructure innovation.
INDUSTRY
Technology (Construction/Utilities)
COUNTRY
Netherlands
SERVICE PROVIDED
Application modernization, cloud migration, ongoing development
Challenge
GOconnectIT made a strategic acquisition to strengthen their position in fiber-optic communication management. They bought a startup with an innovative concept but inherited significant technical challenges.
The application struggled with performance issues. Loading times frustrated users, database queries took too long to complete, and the system had difficulty handling real-world usage at scale. The architecture was built on outdated patterns that made even simple changes time-consuming and risky. The codebase was complex enough that the in-house team couldn't confidently add new features without risking existing functionality. Developer morale suffered as a result.
But here's the challenge: GOconnectIT couldn't afford downtime. The platform served over 25,000 active users daily contractors, network operators, and field workers who relied on it for critical infrastructure projects. Shutting it down for a complete rebuild wasn't an option.
The platform suffered from:
-> Severe performance bottlenecks causing slow response times
-> Poor scalability unable to handle growing user base
-> Legacy architecture blocking new feature development
-> Long-running database queries affecting user experience
-> Lack of modern integrations (ES read model was missing)
-> Unstable codebase with frequent bugs
-> Developer reluctance to work on the outdated system
GOconnectIT's market position depended on quickly transforming this acquired asset into a competitive advantage. Every month of delay meant lost opportunities and frustrated customers expecting innovation.
Solution
We tackled this challenge with a comprehensive modernization strategy that addressed both immediate pain points and long-term scalability needs.
The solution required four parallel initiatives:
Building a detailed modernization roadmap to sequence improvements strategically
Refactoring core components to eliminate technical debt and performance bottlenecks
Separating refactoring work from new feature development to maintain business momentum
Migrating to GCP for better scalability and reliability
Creating a fully automated data migration process on AWS to move terabytes of legacy data safely
This wasn't a rip-and-replace job. We kept the application running for 25,000+ daily users while systematically rebuilding it from the inside out.
The key was strategic sequencing - fixing what hurt most first, then progressively modernizing the architecture to unlock future capabilities.
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The app couldn’t be shut down, as thousands of active users relied on it in their day-to-day operations.
Process
Team Composition:
12 PHP developers
3 QA Engineers
2 DevOps engineers
1 Windows system administrator
1 Project Manager
Technology Stack:
Backend: PHP with Symfony framework
Cloud: Google Cloud Platform, AWS
Database: Optimized with Elasticsearch for read operations
Infrastructure: Fully automated cloud-based architecture
Development Process
Initiative 1: Preparing Modernization Strategy and Roadmap
We started by mapping the entire technical landscape. Our team conducted a thorough assessment of the legacy codebase, identifying critical bottlenecks, architectural weaknesses, and opportunities for quick wins. We prioritized based on user impact and business value - what would make the biggest difference fastest?
The roadmap outlined a phased approach spanning multiple quarters. Each phase had clear success criteria and rollback plans. This gave GOconnectIT visibility into the transformation journey and confidence that we wouldn't disrupt their business during the process.
Initiative 2: Refactoring Core Components
The application's foundation needed significant work. We tackled the most problematic areas first - database queries that took 10+ seconds, inefficient data structures, and tightly coupled code that made changes risky.
We introduced modern design patterns, separated concerns properly, and built unit tests to prevent regressions. Each refactored component had to meet strict performance benchmarks before going live. The speed improvements were immediately noticeable to end users.
"TSH has been able to help us in times of trouble.
They scaled up a team quickly, refactored the application while keeping the store open, and they did it all with strong project management and within budget."
Bart van Muijen
CTO at GOconnectIT
Initiative 3: Separating Development into Refactoring and New Features Delivery Streams
Here's where it got interesting. GOconnectIT couldn't pause feature development while we fixed the foundation. Their customers expected continuous improvements, and competitors weren't standing still.
We split the team into two parallel tracks. One focused exclusively on modernization and technical debt elimination. The other delivered new features using improved components as they became available. This dual-stream approach meant GOconnectIT never had to choose between stability and innovation-they got both.
Initiative 4: Migrating to Google Cloud Platform
We implemented infrastructure-as-code, automated deployments, comprehensive monitoring, and auto-scaling capabilities.
The migration happened gradually. We moved non-critical services first, validated performance, then progressively migrated core functionality. At no point did users experience downtime or degraded service. The cloud infrastructure reduced operational overhead while dramatically improving reliability and scalability.
Initiative 5: Fully Automated Data Migration Process from Legacy to New System
This was the most technically demanding piece. We needed to migrate terabytes of data from the legacy system while both systems ran simultaneously. The complexity wasn't just volume - it was data consistency.
Different customers had varying configurations, and multiple customers often worked for the same client requiring identical setups. The legacy data was inconsistent, requiring extensive validation and transformation during migration.
We built a custom AWS cloud-based ETL pipeline with multiple validation checkpoints. The system could detect anomalies, pause for human review, and resume automatically. Data migrated in batches overnight, with real-time synchronization to catch any changes happening during the process. This automated approach ensured data quality and integrity throughout the migration while minimizing risk to ongoing operations.
READ MORE
→ GCI improved scalability by migrating terabytes of legacy system’s data to AWS
→ A construction tech company saves $90K yearly after infrastructure optimization
Overcoming the "Live System" Challenge
The hardest part? Doing all this while serving 25,000+ daily users who couldn't tolerate outages. Every change had to be backward-compatible. Every deployment needed instant rollback capability.
We implemented feature flags for granular control over rollouts. Blue-green deployments became standard practice. Comprehensive monitoring caught issues before users noticed them. This discipline meant we delivered a complete platform transformation without a single maintenance window.
Outcome
GOconnectIT's refactored platform now delivers new features continuously while supporting 25,000+ active users with significantly improved performance, resulting in a strategic advantage that led to a business buyout.
→ Completed full application refactoring while maintaining 100% uptime for 25,000+ daily users across the entire modernization process
→ Reduced cloud infrastructure costs by $90,000 annually through optimized architecture and efficient resource utilization on Google Cloud Platform.
→ Increased platform competitiveness and market attractiveness so significantly that GOconnectIT received and accepted a business buyout offer - validating the modernization's strategic value.
