Clockwork Creative Technology

The UK's top-ranked Claris FileMaker Partner

We build bespoke business software and provide full technical services. Custom FileMaker systems, proven off-the-shelf products, UK-hosted infrastructure, and Apple IT support, all from one team, since 1998.

Bespoke Claris FileMaker development for any business size
Ready-made systems for studios, agencies, and operations teams
Clockwork Cloud, UK-hosted FileMaker on infrastructure we own
Apple-certified managed IT support for Mac-led businesses

Our FileMaker Services Free Consultation

Does any of this sound familiar?

Most of the businesses that come to us are dealing with at least one of these problems.

Shoehorning your operations into off-the-shelf software that was never built for your business

Running critical processes on spreadsheets that have outgrown what spreadsheets are for

Juggling several disconnected systems with manual steps to move data between them

Relying on a FileMaker system whose original developer is no longer available

Doing high-volume repetitive work manually that should long since have been automated

Not quite trusting the data in your systems, because too much of it is entered or moved by hand

We fix these problems. We have been doing it for 28 years, for organisations ranging from one-person studios to national retailers and NHS trusts.

Where would you like to start?

Different situations call for different starting points. Choose the one that fits where you are.

Option 01

I need a system built

You have a clear idea of what you need, or a business problem you want solved. We will talk through the brief, scope the work, and build it properly.

How we build →

Option 02

I have an existing system that needs work

Your developer has moved on, your system is slow or unreliable, or you have inherited something you do not fully understand. We take over, audit, and fix.

Existing systems →

Option 03

I am not sure what I need

Many of our best long-term clients started here. Book a free hour with one of our senior developers and we will help you work out what the right answer actually is.

Book a free hour →

What we do

We are a software development and IT support company. Our software division builds custom business systems, both ready-made products and bespoke development. Our IT division provides managed support for Apple-led businesses. Same team, same standards, one point of contact.

Running in weeks, not months

Studio management, warehouse operations, automatic artwork, asset management, and client portals. Proven products built over decades and configured to fit your business.

See our products →

Built around how you actually work

Built from scratch around your exact processes. If your business has workflows that off-the-shelf software cannot handle, we build the system that can.

How we build →

One team, one bill, no surprises

UK-based hosting on infrastructure we own. Fixed-cost support contracts with agreed response times. One number to call when something needs attention.

Support options →

IT that speaks Mac fluently

Apple-certified managed IT for businesses that run on Mac. Device management, Jamf deployment, networking, security, and ongoing support contracts.

IT services →

Software built to last, by a team that sticks around

Clockwork was founded in 1998. Many of our clients have been with us for over a decade, because a system that evolves with your business is worth far more than one that does not. We build things properly the first time, and we are still here when you need to change them.

We connect to practically any third-party system, which means our solutions sit alongside whatever you are already running. Sage, Xero, SAP, Microsoft 365, Adobe InDesign and more. We have also been exploring how AI tools integrate with business systems and can advise on where the technology adds genuine value rather than just noise.

60+ owned servers

The Clockwork Cloud hosts your solution on infrastructure we own and operate.

You see it being built

Agile delivery means you interact with working software from early in the project.

Deep integrations

REST APIs, SQL, Claris Connect. Your new system talks to your existing ones.

Bespoke and off-the-shelf

Built from scratch or from our proven product frameworks, whichever fits.

Clockwork Cloud

Most FileMaker hosts rent you space on someone else's hardware. We own ours.

Clockwork Cloud runs on over sixty servers we own and operate in UK data centres. That means a single accountable provider. When something needs attention, the same team that built your system fixes it. No third-party ticket queues, no one passing the buck.

60+

Owned servers

99.9%

Target uptime

Data residency

How we work

No handoffs between designers and developers. No project managers in the middle. The people you talk to are the people who build your system.

Discover

We start by understanding your business and the problem you are actually trying to solve, not just the brief as written. Most solutions improve significantly at this stage.

Build

You see working software early and steer as you go. No big reveal at the end. No surprises when it goes live.

Support

We stay involved after go-live. Most of our clients have worked with us for years, because a system that evolves with your business is worth considerably more than one that does not.

Integrations

Your software does not operate in isolation. We connect it to the platforms your business already runs on, via REST API, Claris Connect, ODBC, or direct integration.

Finance and Accounting

Sage

Xero

QuickBooks

SAP Ariba

Stripe

PayPal GoCardless

Microsoft 365

Outlook

Teams

SharePoint

OneDrive

Azure

Creative and Production

Adobe InDesign

Dropbox

Box

Google Drive

Google Sheets

CRM, Marketing and Sales

Salesforce

HubSpot Pipedrive

Mailchimp

SendGrid ActiveCampaign

E-commerce and Payments

Shopify

WooCommerce

Forms, Surveys and Data Collection

JotForm

Typeform

SurveyMonkey

Collaboration and Project Management

Slack

Asana

Trello

Jira

Zoom

DocuSign

Communication and Messaging

Twilio SMS

Common questions

Straight answers to the questions we hear most often.

Our development rate is £140 per hour. Most new bespoke projects fall in the range of £15,000 to £50,000 depending on scope and complexity, though we have delivered smaller pieces of work for significantly less and larger enterprise systems for more. We will always give you an honest estimate before any work begins, and we will not start without a written brief agreed in advance.

Yes, and roughly half our work involves existing systems. Whether your original developer has moved on, your system has outgrown itself, or you have inherited something you do not fully understand, this is a situation we deal with regularly. We typically start with a Health Check to establish what is there before proposing any development work.

Across our 28-year history we have worked with sole traders and one-person studios all the way up to national retailers, NHS trusts, and police forces. The right client for us is one where data and process matter, not a particular size. That said, our bespoke development work is typically most cost-effective for businesses with five or more users or meaningful operational complexity.

Yes, where scope is well defined. We provide fixed-fee quotes based on estimated effort at our standard rate. If scope changes materially during a project we raise a revised quote before proceeding. We do not surprise clients with invoices they were not expecting.

Yes. Clockwork Cloud is our own hosting infrastructure, over 60 servers we own and operate in UK data centres. Plans start from £25 per user per month on a shared server, with dedicated server options from £35 per user per month including the Data API. Enterprise arrangements are available for larger deployments.

Depth of expertise and length of track record. Our principal developer is a Claris MVP, a designation awarded by Claris to a small number of people globally for sustained technical leadership. We have been on the platform since 1998, we are the UK's top-ranked Claris Partner, and we have more verified best answers on the Claris Community forum than anyone else over the past three years. We also own our hosting infrastructure, which most FileMaker consultancies do not.