Development of a 2D roof configurator

The choice of the roof plays an important role in the construction of architectural structures, because it has not only practical functions, but also has great decorative potential and makes the appearance of the building complete. Therefore, an important task of the developer company is to help its customers decide on the format of the roof.

And here there are two approaches: use outdated catalogs or give preference to more innovative and efficient tools, such as the 2D configurator. In this article, we propose to consider the second option in more detail. Let’s talk about what a 2D configurator is, how it helps in roof design, and how the development of such a tool goes in our team.

The 2D configurator is a web-based tool where the user can create a 2D roof model based on their individual preferences. To do this, the appropriate switches are available to him, with the ability to select the bias, shape, material, color and other parameters that are laid down at the tool development stage.

The configurator displays all the changes made in real time, and in fact acts as an online constructor. When the client creates an ideal roof for himself, the developer company will only have to agree on the details and transfer the project to the builders for practical implementation.

If you look at the 2D configurator from a business point of view, you can highlight a number of important advantages:

• Improving communication with clients. The configurator takes the presentation of services to a new level and allows you to take into account all the wishes of the client. Ultimately, this has a positive effect on the quality of service and the reputation of the company.
• Increasing sales. Once the client has created his own “perfect roof”, he will have no arguments left to refuse the deal. As a result, the number of sales will increase markedly.
• Competitive advantages. Currently, 2D configurators are not very common in the construction market, so using such an innovative tool will make your company stand out from the competition.

• Automation. With a 2D configurator, managers can spend less time on repetitive presentations and can instead focus on improving the experience. In addition, the configurator is able to independently calculate the cost of materials and roofing work, based on previously entered data and parameters selected by the user.
• Quick setup. On the business side, the configurator also has a simple and intuitive interface. This allows companies to easily add new options, change material costs and other configurations.
• Flexibility of use. The 2D configurator can be integrated into an existing company website, into a CRM system, or used as a completely standalone web application.

Now that we have decided what a configurator is, how it works and what its advantages are, we can move on to the technical part. First, let’s look at the main technologies that are used to implement such a tool.

Let’s start with the fact that the work of the 2D configurator is carried out mainly on the client side. This means that when developing the frontend part, you should give preference to reactive frameworks Vue.js or React.js, as they provide maximum performance and UI responsiveness. However, with a limited budget, the front-end can also be built on static technologies – HTML/CSS/JavaScript.

The next question is how exactly the configurator will work. If you plan to integrate the tool into an existing company website or into a CRM system, you will also need to implement an API, which, in essence, will provide communication between the client and the server. You can use different technologies for this, such as PHP/Python/Flask-RESTful. In this option, the development of a new backend is not required.

If you want the configurator to work as a completely autonomous web system, the implementation of the backend part will be simply necessary. After all, it is the server that provides data storage. In this case, the project stack will include such technologies as PHP/Python/Java languages, Node.js platform or Django/Flask/Laravel/Yii2/Spring frameworks.

The life cycle of a 2D configurator consists of six consecutive stages, which are performed according to the iterative Scrum methodology. Let’s consider them in more detail:

• Collection of information. When starting a project, the development team needs to determine which parts of the roof will be customizable, what configuration options will be available to users, whether models and textures are available or need to be created separately. It is also important to understand how the configurator will work – as a standalone application or it will be built into the client’s existing web system.
• Design. One of the most important stages, during which ideas are tested, the concept of the project is described and technical documentation is developed. In fact, during design, specialists create a carefully thought-out prototype of the product, including a description of the functionality, interface warframes, and project mathematics. Such a mockup allows the customer to understand exactly how the configurator will work even before the start of its technical implementation.

• Development of design and 2D models. In the next step, designers create mockups of the user interface of the configurator, as well as working on 2D models and textures, taking into account all possible variations of colors, shapes and materials.
• Technical development. Based on the finished design, Frontend specialists create the client part of the configurator, with which users will interact. After that, backend developers are connected to the project, whose tasks include creating APIs, designing servers, organizing database architecture, and writing code for functionality.
• Testing. Before launching into a release, you need to make sure that all configurator systems work correctly and do not contain errors. This work is performed by QA engineers – quality assurance specialists.
• Launch and support. In order for the configurator to always work correctly and meet the needs of users, after the development is completed, it is necessary to ensure its high-quality technical support and continuous development. To do this, we connect the project to maintenance.

The 2D roof configurator will allow your business to take the quality of customer service to a new level, automate some of the routine processes and significantly increase sales. But you need to understand that the configurator is a product that is very sensitive to details and the quality of its technical execution plays an extremely important role. Therefore, we recommend that you trust the development only to teams that have relevant experience.

To implement such projects, AVADA MEDIA has already formed teams of specialists and cases of successful projects. We create configurators tailored to the individual needs of each client. Therefore, by contacting us, you will receive a fully optimized solution aimed at solving specific business problems.