Re-architecting uLab’s uDesign Platform for Cloud Scale and Automated Billing

uLab Systems needed uDesign rebuilt for the cloud. Local installs blocked web access, automated billing, and scalable case management. Ideas2IT rebuilt it as a microservices platform on AWS, collapsed a 45-day billing cycle to under 10 days, and shipped uDesign Cloud without disrupting practices already running on it.

Client

uLab Systems

Industry

Healthcare

Service

App Modernization

Engagement

Embedded Engineering Partnership

Team

15 engineers

01 Challenge

uLab Systems ran uDesign as a desktop application: orthodontists installed it locally, updated it manually, and managed cases, ordering, and billing inside software that couldn't scale beyond the machine it ran on. Every growth constraint traced back to that single architectural fact.

02 Solution

The first decision was architectural: rebuild uDesign entirely as a cloud-native web platform rather than port the desktop application. Ideas2IT built a React and Python/Golang microservices system on AWS, decomposed patient, treatment, and order management into independent services, and automated the billing infrastructure that had been running on a 45-day manual cycle.

03 Outcome

Billing cycle time dropped from 45 days to under 10. Application performance improved 50% over the desktop version. More than 400,000 orthodontic cases have been planned on the platform uLab now runs entirely in the cloud.

Phase 01

Cloud Migration and Web Platform Build

Cloud migration and web platform foundation: moving uDesign off the desktop and onto AWS

The desktop architecture had to go entirely, not be partially ported. Ideas2IT rebuilt uDesign as a web application from the ground up:

Gaps were documented:
  1. a React-based UI handling patient creation, STL file uploads, treatment plan management, and the full aligner ordering flow, backed by Python Django microservices deployed on AWS ECS and EKS.
  2. OKTA provided authentication, authorization, and onboarding. Patient management, case management, and order management each became independent services, deployable without touching the others.
  3. The result was uDesign Cloud 1.0: a multi-tenant SaaS platform that orthodontist practices accessed through a browser, with no installation, no manual update cycle, and no local dependency.
DELIVERABLES
  • uDesign Cloud 1.0
  • React web UI (patient, case, order flows)
  • Python Django microservices
  • AWS ECS + EKS deployment
  • OKTA auth and onboarding
  • STL file upload and treatment plan management

Phase 02

Billing Automation and Systems Integration

Billing automation and systems integration: collapsing a 45-day cycle to under 10 days

The billing and promotion calculation pipeline was the most acute operational constraint: a 45-day manual cycle that ran on no automation and connected to nothing.

Gaps were documented:
  1. Ideas2IT built a dedicated Billing Service and Case Ceiling handler that automated charging, promotion application, and cost-control logic end to end.
  2. Payment processing integrated Adyen and Authorize.NET. Salesforce, NetSuite, and QuickBooks connected through a Boomi ESB integration layer, replacing manual reconciliation across all three systems.
  3. A bundled pricing engine supported mild, moderate, and comprehensive aligner packages, with A La Carte customisation layered on top. Processing time for billing and promotions dropped from 45 days to under 10.
DELIVERABLES
  • Automated Billing Service
  • Case Ceiling cost-control handler
  • Adyen + Authorize.NET integration
  • Salesforce + NetSuite + QuickBooks via Boomi
  • Bundled pricing engine
  • A La Carte order customisation layer

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Phase 03

Microservices Completion and uDesign Cloud 1.1

Microservices completion and uDesign Cloud 1.1: full platform independence from the desktop

With the core services running, the remaining work was completing the decomposition and hardening the platform for scale. CI/CD pipelines, CloudFormation automation, and OPA policy authorization brought the DevOps layer up to production standard.

DynamoDB handled user, role, and file management as independent stores. A feature flag system let uLab ship and test new capabilities without full releases. uSmile AI brought dental monitoring into the platform using AI-based treatment prediction from uploaded STL files.

The full release, uDesign Cloud 1.1 alongside uDesign 10.1, gave orthodontists a web-native platform that worked seamlessly with the desktop version for practices transitioning between the two, with no forced cutover.

DELIVERABLES
  • CI/CD pipeline + CloudFormation automation
  • OPA policy authorization
  • DynamoDB file and role management
  • Feature flag system
  • uSmile AI dental monitoring
  • uDesign Cloud 1.1 + uDesign 10.1 release

Our partnership with Ideas2IT resulted in the most successful software rollout I've seen in my 30-year career. They guided us through economic shifts and project twists while keeping quality uncompromisingly high.

Shawn Powers

CIO, uLab Systems

The Outcome

From desktop install to cloud platform: the modernisation uLab's next decade of growth runs on

Label Number Description
Billing cycle after automation 45 days → under 10 Automated charging and promotion calculation replaced a fully manual pipeline. Billing runs that previously took 45 days complete in under 10, with no custom engineering required per cycle.
Performance improvement vs. desktop 50% The cloud-native web platform outperformed the installed desktop version across load and processing benchmarks. Orthodontists access patient records and treatment plans faster than the software they replaced.
Cases planned on uDesign in production 400,000+ The platform uLab runs today has supported more than 400,000 orthodontic treatment plans, serving practices across the US through a browser rather than a locally installed application.
The billing automation, the microservices decomposition, the integrations with Salesforce, NetSuite, and the payment gateways: none of these were cosmetic improvements. Each one removed a constraint baked into the desktop architecture from the start. A 15-engineer team rebuilt a $50M company's operating platform from the ground up, in production, without breaking the practices depending on it.