IQES

Daniele, can you tell us more about IQES and its core expertise?

‍“IQES, founded in 2006 in Winterthur, Switzerland, specializes in providing web-based services to schools. Our application, Evaluationcenter, is a powerful survey tool that enables schools and educators to gather feedback and conduct evaluations efficiently. In addition, we offer online resources and tools designed to support school leaders in driving institutional improvement and help teachers enhance their instructional skills. Our mission is to elevate the quality of education by focusing on the growth and development of both schools and educators. Today, we proudly serve approximately 10,000 schools across the German-speaking regions of Europe, including Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and parts of Italy." "As a focused and agile company, we rely on strategic partnerships to maintain our commitment to excellence. Two of our most valued partners are Fundaments and codenic. Codenic plays a critical role in our software development and system management, while Fundaments is our trusted provider of cloud services. We carefully choose our partners to ensure we consistently deliver the highest level of service to our customers"

‍Jens, could you explain us the role codenic plays in supporting IQES?

‍"Codenic specializes in full-stack web development, crafting robust web applications such as IQES's Evaluationcenter. We also offer end-to-end system management services, whether on our own infrastructure or on that of our customers. For IQES, this includes managing the cloud infrastructure provided by Fundaments. We deliver a complete solution, from application development through to deployment and ongoing monitoring, ensuring seamless performance at every stage."

‍How did you experience the shift from a traditional hosting environment to Kubernetes?

‍Jens: ”Our journey with container virtualization (Docker) began eight years ago, making the transition to Kubernetes a natural evolution. Despite encountering some challenges, this migration stands out as one of our most strategic decisions. Kubernetes has significantly enhanced our development process, facilitating easier updates and scalable applications. We are also impressed with the stability and reliability provided by the VMware Tanzu platform.”

‍What was the most significant challenge you faced?

‍Jens: “Understanding Kubernetes can be quite complex.Thankfully, we had the opportunity to manage a thorough transition, which included extensive testing. Fundaments played a crucial role in supporting us through this critical process.” Daniele: “Our journey was marked by a period of trial and error. We had extensive discussions with Fundaments to fine-tune our setup and received a proof-of-concept cluster for testing. This was essential, given the scale of migrating data for 10,000 schools. Fundaments demonstrated exceptional responsiveness whenever we had questions or faced challenges. The result was a robust solution with well-defined roles: Fundaments manages cluster setup and maintenance, while codenic handles internal operations. A high-quality partner like Fundaments made our Kubernetes migration significantly smoother and more efficient.”

‍What advantages does this solution offer for both your organization and your customers?

‍Jens: “Rolling updates have simplified our processes by eliminating downtime, allowing us to avoid scheduling updates during off-hours. This enhancement benefits both our team and our customers, who now receive updates and new features more promptly. Additionally, the ability to scale clusters easily—whether to handle peak loads or onboard new schools—has been crucial. This scalability ensures us to maintain optimal performance and efficiency at all times.” Daniele: “Key advantages for us include enhanced platform availability, superior scalability, and improved security. The migration to Kubernetes has been transformative, drastically reducing the need for manual intervention and freeing up valuable time that we can now devote to serving our customers. This newfound efficiency has strengthened our confidence in our ability to scale and grow. Previously, we were concerned about handling increased demand with new customers Now, we are assured of our capacity to meet future growth with certainty.”

At Fundaments, we provide Pay-as-You-Go model. How has your experience been with this approach?

‍Jens: “The Pay-as-You-Go model offers exceptional control and transparency over our costs. It allows us to quickly scale resources for testing and then adjust them as needed, ensuring efficiency both in development and production environments. This flexibility is a major asset for IQES, and codenic greatly values the precise control it provides.”

‍Fundaments is the first cloud provider in the Netherlands to achieve VMware Sovereign Cloud status. How does this benefit IQES?

‍Daniele: “Although I was initially unfamiliar with the concept, it quickly became clear that VMware Sovereign Cloud was exactly what we needed. We require a cloud environment that offers full transparency and control. Since our start in 2006, we've had to address questions from government agencies regarding data security and server location. The Sovereign Cloud status from Fundaments simplifies these discussions, providing us with clear control over our cloud infrastructure and ensuring compliance with relevant regulations. Moreover, Fundaments' ISO certifications have been instrumental in our interactions with government agencies.”

‍In closing, how would you describe your partnership experience with Fundaments?

‍Daniele: “While we initially explored options with Azure and Amazon, they lacked the personal touch that was crucial for us. For a small company like ours, having a partner with a personal connection—someone who truly understands and cares about our needs—is essential. We are very pleased with Fundaments and anticipate a long-term, fruitful partnership. The collaboration is both highly personalized and efficient, with a team that is knowledgeable and supportive in a straightforward, no-nonsense manner. Fundaments is an ideal match for us.” Jens: “We are actively monitoring Fundaments for any additional services that might align with our future needs. Fundaments is an ideal partner for us, both today and as we look ahead.”