FirstEngineer

Service

Design that survives contact with the build

Not a pretty mockup that falls apart the moment it meets real data. Interface design done against the actual states — empty, loading, error, too much text — by the people who then build it.

Typically 1–3 weeks
Product design
Designed against real states

01

Designed against real states

Empty, loading, error, and far too much text — the states that decide whether software feels finished or half-built. We design them up front instead of discovering them mid-build, because that is precisely where most interfaces fall apart and where the rework budget goes.

  • Screen designs for the real states, not just the happy path
  • A small component system your app can grow into
  • Responsive behaviour decided, not left to chance
  • Handover straight into the build, because it is the same team
A system, not a pile of screens

02

A system, not a pile of screens

A small component set with real rules for spacing, type and colour, so page ten still looks like page one and you do not need a designer involved in every new screen. Systems compound as the product grows; a folder of one-off mockups does the opposite.

Responsive on purpose

03

Responsive on purpose

How each layout behaves on a phone is a decision we make, not whatever the grid happens to do when the window gets narrow. Most of your traffic is mobile, so the small screen is designed first and the desktop version has to earn the extra space it is given.

Design and build are the same team

04

Design and build are the same team

No handover gap and no arguing about what the mockup meant, because the people who drew it are the people who ship it. That removes the most expensive step in most design engagements — the translation between designer and developer, where intent quietly goes missing.

How it runs

Same four steps, every project

  1. 01

    Scope

    A call, then a one-page scope: what gets built, what it costs, what date it lands, and what is explicitly not included.

  2. 02

    Build

    The core of the thing first, on your infrastructure from day one. A working demo every Friday, whether the week went well or not.

  3. 03

    Harden

    The parts everyone skips — empty states, errors, retries, analytics, and the case where a user does something strange.

  4. 04

    Ship

    Live, with monitoring and a handover doc. Two weeks of support included, then you take it or we stay on.

Pricing

What this usually costs

The exact number comes out of the scoping call. These are the shapes it takes.

Standard

Monthly · pause or cancel anytime

$2,000per month

One active build at a time, delivered in order. The plan most founders start on — enough to get a product live and keep it moving.

Priority

Monthly · pause or cancel anytime

$3,600per month

Two builds running in parallel and a faster turnaround, for when there is a launch date someone else already committed to.

Embedded

Monthly · 1 month minimum

from $7,500per month

Dedicated capacity that behaves like a team member — in your standups, on your roadmap, accountable for a slice of the product.

Other things we build

Tell us what you need built

Thirty minutes, free, no proposal. You leave with a scope, a number, and a date — or an honest reason why we’re not the right people.