Frequently asked questions
Procurement and partnership questions that usually arrive before a statement of work.
Who is the contracting party?
Localhost Ltd is the contracting party. You keep a named Localhost point of contact for scope, matching, and delivery for the duration of the engagement. Specialists work under Localhost, with capacity scaled to the stack and the load.
Why is this Localhost Ltd rather than a personal consultancy?
You get clear commercial accountability with variable capacity: Localhost matches specialists across a broad technical range as the work needs them, and holds leadership, matching, quality, and continuity after launch under one relationship.
Do you subcontract?
Yes, when the stack or risk requires specialists. We match people from a trusted engineering network and scale with the work. You still deal with a named Localhost point of contact on scope and escalation; subcontracting is not a hand-off of accountability.
What is the difference between Build, Managed Service, and Rescue?
Build is fixed-scope delivery against a done definition you can accept. Managed Service is ongoing platform support and ops for a live estate. Rescue is a time-boxed spike to stabilise or unblock, then decide what commercial shape comes next. More detail: Build, Managed Service, and Rescue.
Who owns the IP?
Client project IP is assigned as agreed in the statement of work or Managed Service agreement. Products Localhost operates remain with Localhost or the relevant product entity unless a separate agreement says otherwise.
Do you sell day rates or bags of hours?
No. We sell fixed-scope Build, Managed Service, or time-boxed Rescue. Continuity agreements cover responsibility for a live estate, not an anonymous pool of hours.
Can you work alongside our existing developers or suppliers?
Yes. We do not typically delegate Localhost-owned work to the client's developers, but we can shape a scope that keeps all parties productive and work alongside other teams when that is the safer path.
Do you take fixed-price work?
Yes, when the scope is clear from the start. Fixed price becomes uncomfortable without a maintenance arrangement afterwards, because real fit and scope changes appear once the system meets the business. That is why Build often pairs with Managed Service later.
How do you use AI?
We use AI extensively where it creates measurable value inside Build, Managed Service, and Rescue: speed, leverage, and clearer risk pictures. Localhost still owns judgment, security, compliance, reliability, and unintended data leakage. AI is delivery sauce on the three commercial shapes, not a separate product. We can also advise on AI usage and adoption when that is part of the engagement.
What do you not take on?
Anything we cannot stand behind in production: anonymous staffing without Localhost accountability, discovery sold as a fixed price, or AI-led scopes that leave security and operability out of the brief. When an enquiry is not a fit, we say so within two working days.
How do I start?
Use the short diagnostic on the contact page: the problem you are carrying, engagement type, timeline, system type, and what done looks like. We reply within two working days.