PROFILE
About the founder
For more than 35 years, I've worked on the design, development, rollout, and operation of business and web systems. Today I design and build them as KARHU Inc. Although we are a company, I personally handle the development work.
My career began in systems development at a small management consulting firm. Alongside building business systems on the IBM AS/400 in RPG, I visited clients across many industries, heard their business and management problems first-hand, and learned to turn them into system requirements.
I then moved on to application development on Windows in BASIC, Pascal, and C/C++. At an IT startup, I spent about ten years as a programmer while also taking part in running the company.
Since going independent and founding KARHU Inc. in 2002, I've kept building — from PHP-centered web systems through Laravel, AWS, and Next.js — adapting the technology to the times and to each project.
WHAT I DO BEST
Rather than being a specialist in one language or framework, my strength is this:
Understand what the client is struggling with, investigate the existing environment, work out a realistic solution — and, where needed, design and build it myself and see it through to rollout.
On small to mid-sized projects, I often cover the whole span: requirements, technology selection, database design, infrastructure, backend and frontend development, testing, rollout, and operations. Depending on the project, I'm also used to working alongside web agencies, designers, HTML coders, and other engineers.
Recently, much of my work has been investigating and improving live systems, modernizing legacy stacks, migrating to the cloud, and redesigning authentication — in short, understanding a system that's running today, and moving it to what comes next.
RECENT WORK
Headless commerce site
Built an e-commerce site with Shopify as the backend and Next.js as the frontend. Data that Shopify can't manage is served by a separate Laravel / MySQL API, integrated into the frontend.
The infrastructure runs on a VPS to meet cost requirements. As part of a small team, I handled everything from functional design to system development (wireframes and HTML were handled by a design agency).
- Shopify
- Next.js
- Laravel
- MySQL
- VPS
Network camera video system
Ongoing development of a web system for viewing video from, and controlling (PTZ), network cameras installed outdoors.
While keeping it in operation, we've progressively reworked the video delivery method, the camera-side connection setup, and the backend architecture. Current work includes a redesign of the authentication layer.
- Next.js
- AWS
- WebRTC
- HLS
- Lambda
- DynamoDB
Multi-device signage system
Ongoing development of the frontend and backend for a digital signage system used on operational sites.
It offers dozens of content types and supports a wide range of displays — standard monitors as well as tablets, smartphones, and small LCD panels. I handle it end to end, from system design through implementation and rollout.
- Next.js
- Laravel
Long-running system & AWS migration
One system I've operated and enhanced continuously for close to 20 years. It now runs primarily on AWS, and I handle everything from building the cloud environment to implementation, rollout, and operations.
I'm currently migrating the environment between AWS accounts, and will continue operating the system after the move.
- AWS
- EC2
- RDS
- S3
- CloudFront
Legacy Laravel modernization
Upgraded a system that had long been running on an outdated PHP / Laravel stack, step by step, to the current generation — using Laravel Shift and other tools alongside AI.
The migration covered compatibility issues and fixes to existing code, with verification throughout, all without taking the system offline.
- PHP
- Laravel
- Laravel Shift
Other
- Design and development of a web system with member login and personal pages (Laravel)
- Design and development of a Moodle-based system for an educational institution (10+ custom modules)
- Web systems and templates built on Shopify / WordPress / PowerCMS
- Designed and built a demo system for an overseas mobile app, then handed it over to the local development team
TECHNICAL AREAS
- Backend
PHP / Laravel / Node.js / REST API
- Frontend
JavaScript / TypeScript / Next.js / HTML / CSS
- Cloud / Infrastructure
AWS / Linux / VPS / Nginx / Apache
Hands-on experience building and operating systems on AWS with EC2, ALB, RDS, Lambda, DynamoDB, S3, CloudFront, and more.
- Database
MySQL / MariaDB / PostgreSQL / DynamoDB / Access
- CMS / SaaS
Shopify / WordPress / Moodle / PowerCMS
- Other
WebRTC / HLS / RTSP / RTMP / OTP authentication / third-party API integration
AI is part of my everyday toolkit — for analyzing existing code, technical research, implementation, and refactoring.
WHERE I CAN HELP
- The person responsible for a system has left, and you need someone to investigate itSystem Handover
- You have a long-running web system and need to decide what to do with it
- You want to move an old PHP / Laravel system to a current stack
- You want to migrate from a VPS or on-premises servers to AWS
- You need to move an AWS environment to another account or organization
- You want to migrate parts of an existing system to a new architecture, step by step
- You need authentication, APIs, or third-party integrations redesigned
- You want technical problems in an existing system investigated and fixed
- You've won a web project and need an outside engineer who can cover the backend and AWS
- You're looking for a development partner to own the system side, separate from design and HTML
FOR AGENCIES & DEVELOPMENT FIRMS
Alongside direct requests from businesses, we welcome contract and subcontract work from web agencies and system development firms.
Leave design and HTML to your production team; I'm used to taking on requirements, system design, database design, AWS setup, backend / API development, frontend implementation, and rollout or migration. Business-to-business contracts are supported.
HOW WE WORK
All work is done remotely. Rather than on-site or full-time, five-day-a-week arrangements, we take on engagements like these, with online meetings as needed:
- Engagements scoped to a specific problem or project
- Ongoing support of around 1–3 days a week
- Investigating, improving, and migrating existing systems
- Diagnosing and resolving technical issues
My role isn't managing an organization. It's sorting out technical problems where the work happens — and, when needed, rolling up my sleeves to solve them.
CONTACT
Nothing needs to be settled before you reach out.
“We have an old system and aren't sure what to do with it.”
“We've won a project and need someone to talk to about the system side.”
That's a perfectly good place to start.