2024

AUES Custom Dashboard

Developed in collaboration with Alasdair Roddick (IT Officer), this system was built using the Django web framework and deployed on PythonAnywhere to extend the capabilities of the existing AUES website infrastructure.

The project addressed a key limitation in Squarespace’s native e-commerce system, which only provides two order states: pending and fulfilled. While sufficient for simple transactions, this model lacked the granularity required to support real-world fulfilment workflows, particularly the intermediate stages such as order packing and processing.

To solve this, a custom backend system was designed and implemented to introduce a multi-stage order lifecycle. The dashboard enables committee to manage and track orders through configurable states (e.g. pending → packing → fulfilled), providing improved visibility and control over operations.

Key technical features include:

• Django-based backend with structured models for order state management

• Admin interface for real-time order tracking and status updates

• Custom workflow logic layered on top of Squarespace order data

• Deployment via PythonAnywhere for reliable cloud hosting

The system has since become a core piece of AUES infrastructure, handling all online merchandise orders and enabling scalable, structured operations beyond the limitations of the original platform.