Frequently Asked Questions
Questions About Working With eXcelisys, Answered
Straight answers about what we build, how we bill, who owns the work, and how we rescue projects that have gone sideways.
About Our Services
We specialize in connecting the tools your business already depends on — FileMaker, QuickBooks, Airtable, Salesforce, HubSpot, Mailchimp, Zapier, payment gateways, and more. We also build custom API integrations, so if a service exposes an API, we can almost certainly connect it to your existing systems. If your data is siloed and you’re moving it manually between tools, that’s exactly the kind of problem we solve every day.
Yes — this is one of our most common requests. Whether you’re working with aging .fp5 or .fp7 files, an unsupported FileMaker version, or a solution that’s simply outgrown its original design, we’ve handled migrations at every level of complexity. We’ll assess what you have, preserve what’s working, and bring it forward to a modern, maintainable state.
Related: Migrations & Conversions
Absolutely. Custom database apps are our core specialty — quoting systems, inventory management, case tracking, CRM-style tools, and anything in between. We build solutions that fit the way your team actually works, not the other way around.
Related: Custom Database Design | FileMaker Development | Airtable Development
Yes. We build authenticated web portals for HOAs, professional service firms, contractors, and other organizations that need role-based access, document storage, and client-facing interfaces. Many of these portals also connect to third-party services via API — pulling in live data, triggering workflows, or syncing with tools your team already uses. If your business needs a secure login environment where different users see different things, we can design and build it.
Related: Custom Web Application Development | HOA Websites
Yes. We regularly integrate payment processing, procurement workflows, and e-commerce checkout into custom solutions, along with syncing transaction data into QuickBooks and other accounting platforms. Getting money moving cleanly through your system is something we’ve done many times.
Related: Integrations | E-Commerce Development
Yes. eXcelisys is based in South Bend, Indiana, and works with clients nationwide. Our engagements are run remotely, so where your organization is located doesn’t limit what we can build or how we support it.
We’ve built software for HOAs and community associations, small local businesses, healthcare, legal, manufacturing, campgrounds and RV parks, and nonprofits, among others. Most of our work starts with a business problem rather than an industry, so if yours isn’t listed, ask.
It depends on how your team works, how much data you manage, and how people need to access it. We build on both, so we have no reason to push one over the other. Our FileMaker vs. Airtable comparison walks through the differences.
Working With Us
Custom solutions and maintenance services mean something different for every organization. We work with you to identify your specific needs, then put together an estimate that fits your budget.
Our rate is $195 per hour for single hours, and drops to as low as $135 per hour for larger engagements with larger block-hour retainers. See How We Charge for the details.
Related: How We Charge | Contact Us for a Free Estimate
We work hourly, on a time-and-materials basis, and don’t do fixed-price quotes. Instead, we give you a detailed estimate range, often broken into options or phases, so you can decide what to build and when. For a defined phase, we can sometimes set a not-to-exceed threshold. You pay only for time actually worked, and you control the pace and the spend throughout the project.
Related: How We Charge
Timeline varies by project size and current team capacity, but we know some clients are already in a bind when they reach out. Let us know your deadline upfront — if it’s a factor, we’ll tell you honestly whether we can meet it.
Related: Contact Us
You only pay for work performed. If a project is cancelled partway through, you’re billed for the work completed to that point.
Any unused retainer balance is yours. At any point in the engagement, most often once your solution is complete, we’re happy to refund the remaining balance. Or you can leave it on account for future work, which is what most clients choose.
Related: How We Charge | Contact Us
Yes. Many clients keep us on after a project for support, fixes, and new features. Time is purchased in blocks, with discounts on larger blocks, so you can keep a support budget in place without a long-term contract.
Related: Support and Maintenance | How We Charge
Yes. We offer discounted rates for nonprofit organizations. Your Solutions Services Consultant can walk you through the details when you reach out.
Related: Nonprofit Organizations
Your Solution, Your Ownership
Yes. Everything we build for you belongs to you. You retain full ownership of your data, your database structure, your codebase, and any custom logic we develop.
Related: Why Choose eXcelisys?
Absolutely. We build solutions with the expectation that you — or another developer you choose to hire later — will need to work in them. You won’t be locked into us. We document what we build and hand it over cleanly.
Related: Our Development Process
Yes. Every engagement starts with one of our Solutions Services Consultants, and they don’t hand you off once the project is approved. Your consultant stays on as part of your project team for the life of the engagement, working alongside the developers doing the work, and you can talk with your developer directly whenever you need to. We don’t run ticket systems, and you won’t be passed to someone who wasn’t in the original conversation.
Related: Meet the Development Team | Why Choose eXcelisys?
We work with you to find the best hosting option for your needs, whether that’s your own IT group or a commercial hosting account. Either way, you own the hosting arrangement, your solution, and your data. We’re happy to support your IT staff, or to manage hosting and maintenance for you.
Related: Web Hosting Partners
Our Experience & Qualifications
eXcelisys has been in business since 2001 — over two decades of custom software development. The technologies we specialize in have changed and evolved, but the team has been deep in this work long enough to have seen most problems before.
Related: About Us | Why Choose eXcelisys?
We’re happy to get specific. Our core expertise is FileMaker/Claris (we hold Claris Certified Developer credentials and Airtable certifications), Airtable, WordPress, and custom web application development. If you’re evaluating us for something specific, just ask — we’ll give you a straight answer about what we’ve done and whether it’s a fit.
Related: FileMaker Development | Airtable Development | WordPress Services | All Technologies
Yes. Our Solutions Services Consultants are technical experts first. They’ve worked hands-on with the same kinds of systems and problems you’re dealing with, so your first conversation is a real technical one, not a script. And because your consultant stays with your project from the first call through launch and beyond, the person who understood your needs at the start is still there making sure they’re met.
Related: Consulting & Coaching | Contact Us
Rescue & Repair Work
Yes. We do this regularly — half-built integrations, broken WooCommerce setups, legacy solutions that need stabilizing, or custom apps with logic no one can untangle anymore. We’ll assess what you have, tell you what’s salvageable, and give you a path forward.
Related: Upgrades and Enhancements | Website Repair | Database Support
Absolutely. Whether it’s a calculation that won’t behave, an integration that breaks intermittently, or a solution that’s drifted out of sync with how your business actually runs — we can dig in and fix it.
Related: Support & Maintenance | Website Repair
Yes — we handle net-new builds just as often as rescue and migration work. Whether you need a purpose-built database application, a scalable web platform, or a custom tool that doesn’t exist yet, we can take it from concept through deployment. Most modern builds also include API integrations from the start — connecting your new solution to the other tools and services your business runs on.
Related: Design & Development Services | Portfolio
Still Have a Question?
Tell us what you’re working with and what’s not working. You’ll hear back from someone who knows the technology — not a sales script.
eXcelisys, Inc. | Custom Software & Web Development | Since 2001 | excelisys.com