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Full-Stack Engineer / Chicago

RyanCalacsan

I built a 230,000+ line enterprise platform from scratch as the sole engineer — from real-time pricing engines to payment processing and CRM integration.

View Resume→View My Work

Professional Experience

PrintNinja

Principal Engineer

2025

Built the company's entire modern technology stack from scratch as the sole engineer. PrintNinja is a custom printing company serving self-publishers and game makers.

The Challenge

Inherited an environment with no version control, fragmented contractor code, and significant technical debt. Needed to build a Configure-Price-Quote (CPQ) platform to replace manual quoting processes while migrating critical business logic from legacy PHP systems.

What I Built

230,000+ line full-stack platform using Next.js, React, TypeScript, and PostgreSQL
Real-time pricing engine handling 500+ variables across 4 product lines with LRU caching
Stripe payment integration with webhook processing
Salesforce CRM sync with 80+ custom field mappings across 10 modules
Multi-carrier shipping integration (ShipStation, UPS, TForce Freight)
Self-hosted Docker infrastructure with blue-green deployment and automated backups

Tech Stack

Next.js 15React 19TypeScriptPostgreSQLDrizzle ORMSupabaseDockerStripeSalesforceClerk AuthTurborepo

Featured Projects

PrintNinja system architecture diagram

PrintNinja

Professional Work

Built the company's entire modern technology stack from scratch as the sole engineer. PrintNinja is a custom printing company serving self-publishers and game makers.

Next.js 15React 19TypeScriptPostgreSQLDrizzle ORMSupabaseDockerStripeSalesforceClerk AuthTurborepo
OutreachAI generated messages view showing SMS variants with engagement scores

OutreachAI

AI-Powered

AI-powered patient outreach message generator for maternal and women's healthcare. Care coordinators select a patient, configure outreach parameters, and generate personalized messages across SMS, email, and in-app channels — with multiple variants, engagement predictions, and clinical reasoning.

Next.js 16React 19TypeScriptFastAPIPythonTailwind CSS v4shadcn/uiClaude APIGemini APIDockerVitestVercel
Live DemoGitHub
QuoteCraft dashboard showing quote builder and analytics

QuoteCraft

Live Demo

Quote builder for freelancers and contractors. Create quotes with real-time pricing, share via unique links, accept Stripe payments, and track revenue from a dashboard with analytics.

Next.jsTypeScriptSupabaseDrizzleStripeClerk
Live DemoGitHub
Chicago Current — scroll-driven photo essay of a kayak journey down the Chicago River

Chicago Current

Photo Essay

An immersive, scroll-driven photo essay documenting a 9-mile kayak journey down the Chicago River. Originally published in Mountain Gazette (2024), reimagined as an interactive web experience.

Next.js 15TypeScriptFramer MotionLenisTailwind CSSNext/Image
Live DemoGitHub
Minimal Motion Gallery showing typography and scroll animations

Minimal Motion Gallery

Frontend Showcase

A typography-focused single-page experience with sophisticated micro-interactions. Demonstrates restraint, taste, and CSS mastery through variable font animations, magnetic hover effects, and smooth scroll-triggered reveals.

Next.js 15TypeScriptFramer MotionLenisTailwind CSSVariable Fonts
Live DemoGitHub
print-check CLI tool running prepress validation on a PDF file

print-check

Published on npm

CLI tool that validates print-ready PDF files for prepress requirements. Runs 8 automated checks including bleed, fonts, color space, resolution, and PDF/X compliance. Published to npm.

Node.jsTypeScriptCommander.jsmupdfVitest
GitHubnpm

About Me

I'm a full-stack engineer based in Chicago who builds web applications with a focus on clean architecture and delivering real business value.

Ryan Calacsan

Most recently, I served as Principal Engineer at PrintNinja, where I built a 230,000+ line Configure-Price-Quote platform from scratch as the sole engineer. I joined as their first in-house engineer, inheriting an environment with no version control and significant technical debt from previous contractors. I introduced modern engineering practices, migrated critical business logic from legacy PHP systems, and built a platform handling complex pricing with 500+ variables, payment processing, and CRM integration.

Before transitioning to software engineering, I spent 15 years in photography and studio management — experience that gave me strong project ownership skills and an eye for user experience.

Currently open to full-stack or frontend roles, preferably remote.

Technical Skills

Frontend

ReactNext.jsTypeScriptJavaScriptTailwind CSSCSS AnimationsHTML5CSS3

Backend

Node.jsPostgreSQLDrizzle ORMPayload CMSREST APIsServer ActionsZodRedis

Infrastructure

DockerVercelSupabaseNginxTurborepoGitGitHub ActionsVitest

Integrations

StripeSalesforceClerk AuthShipStationUPSRackspace Cloud Files

Get in Touch

I'm currently looking for full-stack or frontend engineering roles. Feel free to reach out — I'd love to hear from you.

calacsancode@gmail.com
GitHubLinkedIn