Applied Works
Applied Works is a London-based design studio that focuses on digital projects with purpose, working with clients such as the BBC, Climate Arc, the UN and Chatham House. On a 10-week developer internship, I worked alongside the lead developer and gained invaluable experience in an agency environment, contributing to live commercial projects.
JavaScript
Next.js
TypeScript
SCSS/SASS
D3/Visx
Projects
Columbia University
Overview: A resource to help users look at the global import and export of critical minerals and the technologies being produced using them.
Output: Using the Visx library, I developed a reusable treemap and voronoi component for the website, enabling the visualisation of data related to mineral imports and exports by country. The components used a variable colour palette to differentiate between minerals and a custom tooltip was created to display further details based on the user's selection.
Learnings: From this project, I gained a better understanding of Next.js, Typescript, SASS/SCSS, and D3/Visx. I also solved problems like adjusting incoming data to fit the treemap component's structure.
ITU Data Hub
Overview: An existing website for ITU (International Telecommunication Union) Data Hub, which provides comprehensive data and analysis on global ICT infrastructure.
Output: Working on an existing codebase designed by Applied Works, my task involved addressing bugs and enhancing the user experience. In line with the client's requirements, I explored different methods to implement a feature that would allow users to print specific data from the website.
Learnings: After researching various methods, I encountered challenges in finding a solution to make certain pages printable due to the site's complexity. An alternative solution, such as creating a premade PDF page, was considered but not feasible. The options explored were then presented to the client for their feedback.
Veritrade
Overview: A website for Veritrade, a company that specialises in providing details and up-to-date trade data.
Output: The wider task was to revamp and reconstruct their website, which housed a large and intricate data set. My role focused on data visualisation, creating a treemap and a global map for this purpose. On the global map, each red dot's size corresponded to specific data points, representing the data's scale and distribution.
Learnings: This project shared elements with Columbia University, particularly in its early prototype stage with evolving data structures. Working with Veritrade, a Latin American company, meant handling data in Spanish, which added complexity to building the global map.
Reflections
My time at the agency helped to develop my skills in Next.js, TypeScript, SASS/SCSS, D3/Visx, among other languages. Under the mentorship of the lead developer, I tackled live projects, enhancing my problem-solving abilities and critical thinking. I participated in workshops as well as kick-off and scrum meetings, interacted with various team roles, and worked towards set milestones. Contributing to client meetings and presenting our work was rewarding and overall, it was fantastic to gain such hands-on experience in an agency setting.
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