Cog Design

The client and the challenge

As a specialist digital design agency working exclusively in culture and heritage since 1991, Cog Design has a major role to play in the success of its clients. Serving an industry that demands complexity, scale and high-volume online transactions, it relies on Krystal’s hosting, server management and customer support to ensure a flawless experience for its own customers.

Cog Design works with the cream of the UK’s arts organisations. To achieve excellence in such a demanding, data-intensive industry, Cog Design needs a hosting company that feels like an extension of its own team. A partner to take care of the digital foundations, so it can concentrate on delivering outstanding web development and design.

Robust dependability

“Every solution we deliver is unique,” says Michael Smith, Founding Director, Cog Design, “because each client brings individual challenges and opportunities. Yet they all have one thing in common, and that’s the need to scale at a rapid rate.

“In our world, on the day that a big announcement is made on a live entertainment website, tens of thousands of people will head to that site. All at once. Krystal gives us the ability to scale up the infrastructure and support that extreme level of traffic, which is of critical importance. We could get a call from a client in the afternoon, telling us they’ll be announcing Ricky Gervais on sale tomorrow morning, for example, and he’ll be tweeting it to his 14.9 million followers. So, being able to scale up on the fly is absolutely vital to us.

"With so much at stake, we can’t afford a single slip. And that’s why we choose Krystal.”

Flexibility

Krystal’s flexibility doesn’t end with the service and support team. It is baked into our hosting as well. And that’s another reason why Krystal works so well for Cog Design. While Cog’s clients all have similar scalability demands, their service level requirements, design complexity and depth of content can vary widely. With Krystal’s master-crafted, high-speed cloud platform, Katapult, Cog Design has access to a diverse blend of technologies and innovative network architecture. It’s perfectly suited to handle the wide range of workloads.

High performance with low environmental impact

For Michael, flawless delivery, dependable reliability and exceptional support are only a part of the picture. Krystal’s green credentials play a leading role in the relationship.

“We’re a certified B Corporation, just like Krystal. We balance profit with purpose to help build a more inclusive and sustainable economy. To be able to say that our data centres are powered by 100% renewable energy does much more than give us a saleable advantage. It’s fundamental to how we conduct our business.”

Teamwork and support

As is the case with many companies that choose Krystal, the high level of hosting and support is a big positive for Cog Design. It helps them onboard new clients at speed.

“Krystal takes all the hassle out of the onboarding process,” says Michael. “It gives us the ability to very quickly spin up new client sites, without needing lots of in-house technical expertise each time. Working with Krystal means:

• Superior server management and technical know-how. All Krystal’s web hosting is handled by its expert in-house team, and powered by its own proprietary enterprise-grade cloud servers with dual CPUs, LiteSpeed caching and Samsung battery-backed SSDs.
• Proactive and friendly support, with a hands-on approach and careful attention to service and quality. For Michael, it’s a combination of the bespoke, personal feel of a small provider, with the capabilities that come from Krystal’s position as the UK's largest independent hosting company.
• A planet-first approach, with 100% renewably powered services, and a long-term commitment to sustainability. In addition to B Corp status, Krystal is a member of 1% for the Planet, giving at least 1% of its annual profits directly to approved environmental partners.

“Operating in our chosen field has its fair share of challenges,” says Michael. “When we’re working with a high degree of complexity, and at scale, there’s a lot to take care of. Krystal’s server management and support provides the foundation that just lets us get the job done. It feels like they’re part of the family.”