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One Platform for Every Event
Replacing rented, third-party event software with an owned, open-source platform built for the CSIR — engineered for cost control, secure data flow and rapid delivery.
Client Overview
The CSIR is a leading South African public-sector science and technology organisation, researching, developing and diffusing technologies that accelerate the country’s socioeconomic prosperity.
Its work spans industrial development, re-industrialisation and building a capable state, delivered through multiple divisions that each run their own programme of events.
Each division managed its events independently and had no software of its own to run them. The Department of Science and Innovation engaged us to deliver an event management system built for the CSIR’s specific needs, with cost and time front of mind from day one.
The solution was therefore built on open-source technology rather than licensed software. Once proven, the same platform was rolled out to other departments.
Industry
Public Sector · Science & Technology
Company size
2,298 employees
Project type
Event Management System · Web Portal · Mobile Application
The Business Problem
The CSIR needed to move beyond rented event software.
The CSIR relied on independent third-party event organisers to run its events and inform attendees.
Those organisers rarely owned their own software and often worked from short-term rental platforms hired for each event. This tied the CSIR to a different vendor each time, with no way to track repeat attendees, offer add-on services or build lasting institutional visibility into its own events.
Left unresolved, the process meant manual attendee consolidation in spreadsheets, third-party bulk email tools for notifying attendees of changes, and a process that was slow and prone to error during live events.
The CSIR did not own its event software
Each division managed events independently and had no software of its own to run them.
Off-the-shelf products did not meet the requirements
Multiple attempts over several years to buy a suitable product had come up short. Most available solutions were rental or service-based, and none matched the requirements closely enough to be worth owning.
Data handling needed to become less manual
The solution needed to sharply reduce Excel-based extracts and imports, replace them with a full traceable history and import data from APIs wherever possible.
External event organisers still needed to connect
External event organisers needed to be able to push attendee data directly into the application.
Future reporting had to be supported
The datastore needed to support future external reporting tools, not only the application itself.
Cost and time were major constraints
The solution had to fit within a tight cost and time envelope, which ruled out expensive licensed platforms from the outset.
What Made This Complex
A basic event application would not solve the problem.
The CSIR needed a platform it could own outright, extend across departments and run on open-source infrastructure without sacrificing security, traceability or functionality.
Getting this right meant understanding which constraints were non-negotiable — cost, security and traceability — and which needed to flex across departments.
Ownership without the enterprise price tag
Licensed platforms were ruled out on cost grounds.
Security, auditability, role-based access and future reporting therefore had to be engineered on a LAMP stack rather than purchased as part of a licensed platform.
Minimising licensing cost could not mean minimising capability.
Data flow had to be secure and automated
Reducing Excel hand-offs to near zero while allowing external event organisers to push attendee data into the system required an API-first integration layer with full history and traceability.
The platform needed a controlled, auditable way for data to enter from outside the system.
One platform had to support multiple departments
The first version was built around a single department’s requirements, but it had to be designed for reuse so that other CSIR divisions could adopt it without a rebuild.
Our Role
We owned delivery end to end, from requirements analysis and specification through development, testing, deployment and project management.
The same team that understood the CSIR’s operating constraints also built and shipped the platform.
Analysed the requirements
Worked with the project team and stakeholders and verified web application functionality to identify changes required to support the mobile application.
Created the specifications
Created specifications for the mobile application, web portal and APIs.
Developed the solution
Developed the end-to-end solution.
Tested and supported UAT
Tested the solution, assisted users with UAT testing and facilitated formal sign-off.
Deployed the platform
Deployed the mobile application to the Apple App Store, Google Play Store and Huawei App Gallery, and deployed the web portal to internal servers.
Managed the project
Managed the project from initiation through to go-live.
The Solution We Delivered
The result is a web portal and mobile application built on open-source technology, giving the CSIR full ownership of its event management capability.
The platform supports event creation and content management through to live attendee engagement and post-event reporting.
Web Portal
Built in Symfony on a MySQL database, the portal allows organisers to create new events and capture and maintain everything attached to them, including sponsors, exhibitors, innovations, programmes and meetings.
The portal is hosted on the CSIR’s own internal hardware and managed by internal resources.
Mobile Application
The Flutter mobile application gives attendees a single, ongoing home for every CSIR event.
Announcements and notifications are delivered through push notifications, while programme items can be live-streamed to the application, with recordings available afterwards for a defined period.
Event Management
The platform supports full event creation and management across sponsors, exhibitors, innovations, programmes and meetings.
API-First Integration
Attendee data can be securely ingested through APIs, including data pushed directly by external event organisers.
Audit History & Security
The platform provides full audit history in place of ad hoc Excel extracts and imports, with role-based security controlling access to specific web application functionality.
Registration & Attendance
Registration works across the mobile application, web application, website, on-site entry and third-party channels.
The platform also supports attendance tracking and downloadable proof of attendance.
One Application for CSIR Events
A single mobile app installation gives attendees access to the full list of CSIR events.
Tech Stack Used
Web Portal
Symfony framework on a MySQL database as part of a full LAMP-stack, open-source build
Mobile App
Flutter, deployed to the Apple App Store, Google Play Store and Huawei App Gallery
Data Store & Reporting
MySQL for the application, with SQL Server as the platform for future external reporting tools
Hosting
Hosted on the CSIR’s own internal hardware and managed by internal resources
Integration
API-first ingestion of attendee data, including direct pushes from external event organisers
Delivery Tooling
SDLC managed with MS Project; source code managed with Visual SourceSafe
Delivery Created More Than a Working Platform
The project used an adapted Microsoft Solutions Framework approach to realise functionality quickly.
A detailed requirement statement established the scope and understanding needed to complete the functional specification, while the look and feel of the mobile application was formalised through a working prototype.
The solution was delivered in one phase. The database and screens were built function by function, APIs were sequenced to support mobile application development, and a working mobile build was released weekly so look and feel, navigation and information flow could be tested continuously with real users.
Stronger Control & Governance
The platform provides full, audited control of data across the topology, improved control over software versions, role-based security and fully auditable data creation and usage.
The CSIR also controls data availability and how long it remains accessible across platforms.
Lower Costs, Properly Planned
The project was delivered as a planned, budgeted CAPEX project rather than open-ended spend.
An SLA component allowed functionality to be changed and added within allocated time, while the LAMP stack kept licensing costs to a minimum.
The application also has a low ongoing operational cost during live events.
Greater Attendee & Management Visibility
Attendees get access to every item of an event, with immediate notifications and announcements during it.
A single application installation gives access to the full list of CSIR events rather than only one.
Flexible, Seamless Access
Registration works across mobile, web application, website, on-site entry and third-party channels.
Attendees can engage with events online through the mobile application or in person.
Third-party event organisers can continue to be used while central management and control are retained over all data and functionality.
The takeaway
This project shows how a business problem shaped by cost constraints, organisational fragmentation and third-party dependency can be turned into an owned, controlled and extensible platform.
The CSIR needed more than another rented event app. It needed a platform it could own, control and extend across departments while maintaining security, traceability and functionality.
Open-source foundations kept licensing costs down, API-first integration enabled secure and traceable external data exchange, and designing for reuse allowed a solution originally built for one department to extend to others.
If your organisation is managing events — or any recurring operational process — through a patchwork of rented tools and spreadsheets, this is the kind of transformation we build: understood deeply, engineered properly, and delivered as a platform your teams will actually own.
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