Forged42 — Stefan
I build custom software around how your business actually works — end to end, into production.
I take the domain apart, model the system underneath it, and build the whole thing: interface, rules, data, background work and the production it runs in.
How I work
End to end
From an unclear business problem to the schema, the rules, the interface, the tests and the server it runs on. I follow a feature through its entire life, which is also where most of the expensive mistakes are made.
Domain first
I learn your vocabulary, your exceptions and your real constraints before I design anything. The hard part is rarely the code. It is working out what actually has to be true.
Built to keep
Systems that are still understandable, testable and safe to change three years after launch. I would rather ship something that lasts than something that demonstrates well.
Who you would be working with
I am Stefan. Forged42 is my one-person practice — you work directly with the engineer who carries your problem from the first conversation to the production it runs in. Alongside my own clients, I am co-founder and CTO of a skincare publishing startup, the engineer behind a transportation dispatch platform in daily operation since 2024, and lead developer and architect on an enterprise media platform.
I started writing software six years ago through a bootcamp, because I wanted to build things but could not see where to begin. The first application I shipped felt like magic. It still does — and with AI in the loop, shipping has never been more fun. Since then I have followed features from unclear business problems all the way to schema, rules, interface, tests and servers, across industries that share nothing except this: each had to be understood before it could be built.
I care about reliability and clarity, and about being direct with people about trade-offs. The goal is software that fits the work, survives change and remains understandable to the people who inherit it.
Contact
Tell me what needs to change. I’ll tell you honestly whether I’m the right fit, then we can agree on scope, timing and the right working model.
stefan@forged42.deOpen to selected custom-software and consulting engagements. Scope, timing and the right working model are agreed directly.