Delivering a manufacturing execution system, or MES, across platforms involves maintaining future changes as well as building screens. When business functionality changes, separate web and mobile implementations add development and maintenance work. In the Standard Software Research role at Hansol PNS, I re-scoped existing task and process automation software as a web-based cross-platform service, then designed, built and rolled out its in-house standard framework.
A shared development foundation for web and mobile
I proposed managing responsive web, iOS and Android applications in one monorepo. The web application used Next.js, while the mobile applications used React Native and Expo. The goal was to reduce duplicate development and maintenance by managing a common foundation alongside the platform outputs.
A monorepo keeps the code for multiple applications in one repository. What mattered to this project was making common software available through a standard library that other developers could use. The responsibility extended beyond implementing an individual screen: I was building a starting point for subsequent development.
Ship the library with a way to use it
A standard needs both an implementation and a way for developers to apply it. A shared library alone does not prevent people from solving the same problem in different ways if its intended use is unclear. I developed and maintained the standard software library and wrote and distributed its guidelines.
I also trained the developers who would use it. A framework cannot become someone else’s working foundation if its author must keep implementing everything on their behalf. My work included handing over the library and documentation and explaining how to use the setup, so the architecture could be adopted beyond my own implementation.
The work extended from shipping functionality I had implemented to supporting the developers who would build the next features. By proposing and implementing the cross-platform setup and then explaining its use, I took responsibility for both the framework’s design and its adoption within the organisation.