LiveBird Technologies

Node.js Development

Backends that handle the traffic and the data

APIs, real-time services and data pipelines on Node.js and TypeScript — from REST and GraphQL backends behind mobile apps to WebSocket feeds streaming GPS telemetry to a map. Built to run in containers, scale horizontally and be observable from day one.

Discuss your Node.js projectHow we work with it
Node 22 LTS
current runtime
TypeScript
strict, end to end
Docker · K8s
deployment targets
telemetry.gateway.tsTypeScript
1import Fastify from "fastify";
2import websocket from "@fastify/websocket";
3import { db } from "./db";                 // Drizzle + PostGIS
4
5const app = Fastify({ logger: true });
6await app.register(websocket);
7
8app.get("/telemetry", { websocket: true }, (socket) => {
9  const unsubscribe = bus.subscribe("gps.*", (fix) => {
10    socket.send(JSON.stringify(fix));    // fan out to map clients
11  });
12  socket.on("close", unsubscribe);
13});
14
15app.get("/assets/nearby", async (req) => {
16  const { lng, lat, m = 500 } = req.query as NearbyQuery;
17  return db.execute(sql`
18    SELECT id, name, ST_AsGeoJSON(geom)::json AS geometry
19    FROM assets WHERE ST_DWithin(geom, ST_MakePoint(${lng}, ${lat})::geography, ${m})`);
20});
21
22await app.listen({ port: 8080, host: "0.0.0.0" });

Representative Node.js code from our projects

01Why Node.js

What Node.js does better than the alternatives

01

One language, shared types

Zod schemas and TypeScript types flow from database to API to React or React Native client — fewer contract bugs, faster changes.

02

Built for concurrency

The event loop handles thousands of open connections cheaply, which is exactly what live dashboards and telemetry ingestion need.

03

Enormous ecosystem

Fastify, Express, Nest, Prisma, Drizzle, BullMQ, Socket.IO — proven building blocks for nearly every backend requirement.

04

Cloud-native by default

Small containers, fast cold starts on serverless, and first-class support on AWS, GCP, Azure and edge runtimes.

Choose Node.js when

  • APIs serving web and mobile clients with the same TypeScript types
  • Real-time features: WebSockets, server-sent events, MQTT bridges, live maps
  • I/O-heavy integration work — third-party APIs, queues, file processing
  • Teams that want one language across frontend, backend and tooling

Not sure it fits? Compare with the alternatives below or ask us — recommendations are part of every consultation.

Node.js vs. alternatives

02What we build with it

Node.js in production

REST & GraphQL APIs

Typed, documented backends for web portals and mobile apps.

Real-time telemetry

WebSocket/MQTT services pushing vehicle, sensor and field-crew positions to maps.

Geospatial services

PostGIS-backed spatial queries, tile serving and GeoJSON/vector tile pipelines.

Integration layers

Connecting ArcGIS, ERPs, payment providers and legacy systems through one API.

Background jobs

Queues, schedulers and workers for imports, reports and notifications.

Serverless functions

Event-driven handlers on Lambda, Cloud Functions or Vercel.

03How we work with Node.js

6 ways we deliver on Node.js

From greenfield builds to rescues and migrations — each engagement is scoped, estimated and delivered by engineers who work in Node.js daily.

01

API design & development

REST with OpenAPI or GraphQL with code-first schemas; Fastify or NestJS; validation with Zod; authentication via JWT, OAuth2/OIDC or SSO providers.

  • Fastify
  • NestJS
  • OpenAPI
  • Zod

02

Real-time & streaming

WebSocket and SSE services, MQTT and Kafka consumers, Redis pub/sub fan-out and back-pressure handling for high-frequency location and sensor data.

  • Socket.IO
  • ws
  • MQTT
  • Redis
  • Kafka

03

Database & spatial data

PostgreSQL/PostGIS schemas, migrations, Prisma or Drizzle ORMs, spatial queries and vector-tile generation with PostGIS ST_AsMVT or tile servers.

  • PostgreSQL
  • PostGIS
  • Prisma
  • Drizzle
  • pg_tileserv

04

Queues & background processing

BullMQ/Redis or SQS-based job systems for imports, geoprocessing, PDF generation and notifications, with retries, dead-letter queues and dashboards.

  • BullMQ
  • Redis
  • SQS
  • cron

05

Containers, CI/CD & observability

Multi-stage Docker images, GitHub Actions pipelines, Kubernetes or ECS deployments, structured logging, OpenTelemetry tracing and alerting.

  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • GitHub Actions
  • OpenTelemetry
  • Grafana

06

Upgrades & migrations

Moving legacy Express/JavaScript services to TypeScript and current LTS, replacing deprecated dependencies, and splitting monoliths where it pays off.

  • TypeScript
  • ESM
  • Vitest
  • npm audit

04Where it sits

Node.js in a complete stack

No technology ships alone. This is the reference architecture we start from on Node.js projects — the highlighted layer is where Node.js lives; the rest is chosen to fit your data, hosting and team.

Ecosystem we use daily

  • Node.js
  • TypeScript
  • Fastify
  • Express
  • NestJS
  • GraphQL
  • Prisma
  • Drizzle
  • PostGIS
  • Redis
  • BullMQ
  • Socket.IO
  • MQTT
  • Zod
  • Vitest
  • Docker
  • OpenTelemetry

Reference architectureNode.js layer

  1. 01 · Clients
    • Next.js / React
    • React Native / Flutter
    • ArcGIS / Mapbox maps
  2. 02 · API & real-time
    • Fastify / NestJS
    • GraphQL
    • WebSocket / MQTT
  3. 03 · Workers
    • BullMQ jobs
    • Schedulers
    • Stream consumers
  4. 04 · Data
    • PostgreSQL / PostGIS
    • Redis
    • Object storage
  5. 05 · Infrastructure
    • Docker / Kubernetes
    • AWS / GCP / Azure
    • Serverless

05Honest comparison

Node.js or something else?

Node.js vs PHP Laravel

Choose Node.js for real-time features, shared TypeScript types and microservices; choose Laravel for content-heavy apps with admin panels built fast.

Node.js vs .NET

Choose Node.js for JavaScript-centric teams and edge/serverless deployment; choose .NET when the organisation standardises on Microsoft infrastructure.

Still undecided? The web technology guide walks through when we recommend each option.

All web technologies

06FAQ

Node.js questions

Looking for the full service? Node.js work is delivered under our Web Development practice.

Fastify for lean, fast services; NestJS when a larger team benefits from structure and modules. Express only when extending an existing codebase.

Related technologies

Nest.js Development

Structured Node.js backends for teams that will grow

Next.js Development

Fast, indexable web apps built on React

PHP Laravel Development

Batteries-included web apps shipped fast, run cheap

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