A technological leap for birdwatching
Real-time calculation
Full mobile support
Modern interface
Suomen Bongariliitto ry
2021
Birdwatching
Suomen Bongariliitto ry has served for decades as the central community for Finnish birdwatching enthusiasts, offering its members a wide range of services to support the hobby.
We built an entirely new application enabling real-time birdwatching documentation anywhere, anytime. The legacy Pinnari system was replaced with a modern complete solution that serves enthusiasts both at the desk and in the field.
The Pinnari system had outgrown its original design parameters. The database had swollen to millions of observation rows, causing significant performance issues.
The system could only update scores and lists once a day. The interface wasn’t designed for mobile devices — a critical shortcoming for an active field enthusiast.
- Millions of observation rows in the database
- Score updates only once per day
- No mobile support for field use
- Outdated IOC species lists in use
A modern component-based complete solution
We began the collaboration by thoroughly mapping the needs of both the association and its members. We analysed the old system’s architecture, database structure, and how users actually operated in the field.
We concluded by recommending a modern component-based complete solution built mobile-first from the ground up. The new system wouldn’t just replace the old one — it would enable functionality that simply hadn’t been possible before.
Benefits
- Real-time calculation replacing the previous daily update cycle
- Optimised performance even for a large database
- Full mobile support for field observations
- Flexible architecture for future extensions
- Easy to maintain and update technical implementation
- Ability to migrate to updated IOC species lists
Laravel
REST API
React
Frontend framework
MySQL
Database
Directus CMS
Content management
The system runs in Docker containers for flexible scaling and easy environment management. Directus CMS allows the association’s admins to manage content without technical expertise.
"Mobile first" design was the cornerstone of the project. Every view and interaction was designed first for the small screen — a birdwatcher standing in the field with their phone. Only then was it expanded to a desktop view.
We applied a lightweight sprint model where each feature was validated with real users before moving to the next phase. The greatest challenge was understanding the old system’s complex calculation models and reimplementing them in real time.
Updating to the IOC species lists was a strategically significant step — the system was built so that future list updates can be made without code changes.
Outcome
- Real-time observation logging and calculation
- Full usability on mobile devices in the field
- Migration to updated IOC species lists
- Significantly improved user satisfaction among members
- Modern and beautiful interface
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