311 requests with an assistant
Hypothetical. Not a client, not a result.
// The problem
A city takes 311 requests by phone, email and social media, logs them in a spreadsheet, and its call centre answers the same questions about garbage days and parking all day.
// What we would build
A 311 web and mobile app where residents report issues with a photo and a location, routing to the right crew, status updates back to the resident, and an assistant on an open-source model hosted in Canada that answers from the city's published pages and creates requests for staff to accept.
// What is in it
- Requests with photo and map location, from the web or the app
- Routing to departments and crews, with status sent back to the resident
- Field crews close requests from their phones, with a photo
- An assistant that answers from published pages and links its source
- An open-source model served in a Canadian region in the city's own account
// Stack
- Next.js
- React Native
- PostgreSQL with PostGIS
- Llama or Mistral (open-source)
- vLLM
- AWS Canada
// estimate
- Build
- ≈ US$216,000 to US$330,000, delivered within 41 weeksCAD 307,600 to 470,200
- Hosting
- ≈ US$7,020 a monthCAD 10,000 a month
- Support
- ≈ US$2,500 a monthCAD 3,565 a month
Prices in your currency are estimates from today's Bank of Canada rate. All invoicing is in CAD or USD.
- AI route
- Open-source model
- Model running cost
- ≈ US$6,530 a monthCAD 9,300 a month
Timeline by milestone
- Discovery
- 3.5 to 4 weeks
- Specification and evaluation plan
- 0.5 weeks
- Design approved
- 8.5 to 14.5 weeks
- Core features
- 1.5 to 3 weeks
- Full build
- 1 to 1.5 weeks
- First build on devices
- 3 to 5 weeks
- Working pilot
- 5.5 to 9.5 weeks
- Testing and fixes
- 0.5 to 1 weeks
- Store submission
- 1 to 1.5 weeks
- Retention rules checked with your records manager
- 1.5 to 3 weeks
- Launch
- 1 to 1.5 weeks
- Production
- 1 to 1.5 weeks
Outside our hands, and added to the calendar
- App store review
- 1 week
- GIS and property data access
- 1 to 4 weeks
How it is paid
- Deposit 20%
- CAD 61,460 to 93,980
- Discovery 4%
- CAD 12,292 to 18,796
- Specification and evaluation plan 6.1%
- CAD 18,745.30 to 28,663.90
- Design approved 4%
- CAD 12,292 to 18,796
- Core features 3.3%
- CAD 10,140.90 to 15,506.70
- Full build 2.2%
- CAD 6,760.60 to 10,337.80
- First build on devices 8.7%
- CAD 26,735.10 to 40,881.30
- Working pilot 18.5%
- CAD 56,850.50 to 86,931.50
- Testing and fixes 1.1%
- CAD 3,380.30 to 5,168.90
- Store submission 2.9%
- CAD 8,911.70 to 13,627.10
- Retention rules checked with your records manager 8.7%
- CAD 26,735.10 to 40,881.30
- Launch 4%
- CAD 12,292 to 18,796
- Production 6.5%
- CAD 19,974.50 to 30,543.50
- Holdback, 30 days after launch (10%)
- CAD 30,730 to 46,990
- GPU time for training and testing, at cost
- CAD 300. Billed up front, at cost, outside the milestones