At Cogworks, Umbraco is more than a delivery tool. It's the CMS Adam Shallcross first fell in love with in 2008, in the early days of Cogworks. Ever since, it has been one of the key platforms on which we actively invest, contribute, and help strengthen for the long term!
This article contains links to Cogworks pages, products or services
For every article containing links back to Cogworks’ website, we donate £50 to our amazing partner, Community Tech Aid, and any successful partnership will result in another £100 donation to help fund purchases to repair and refurbish donated technology.
We build and design Umbraco websites every day.
But did you know that we've been a partner since 2008 (one of the first, to be precise 😉) and contribute regularly to the Umbraco ecosystem? You can read about our journey with Umbraco here.
Here are 5 recent ways Cogworks support Umbraco beyond just delivery:
Package Development
Open-source Umbraco packages extend what Umbraco can do, without changing the core platform. They’re built and maintained by the community, openly reviewed, and free to use. For brands, this means more reliable features, easier upgrades, and less reliance on bespoke code over time.
We’re proud to say that our packages are used by organisations such as Prostate Cancer UK and Russell-Cooke, as well as many more.
With hundreds of thousands of downloads, these small yet powerful integrations continue to evolve confidently across Umbraco versions. They're carefully maintained, regularly improved, and securely updated to ensure a consistent, high-quality user experience, regardless of the version a platform is running.
The best part? They're free to use, and built from a genuine desire to help Umbraco be the best it can be, for editors, developers, and leading organisations.
1. CogFlare
Our flagship digital efficiency package
CogFlare is our open-source Umbraco package designed, built, and maintained by Cogworks.
It improves how Umbraco works with Cloudflare by clearing cache only for pages that have changed, reducing unnecessary server activity while keeping sites fast and stable.
For one legal client already using Azure green hosting, adding CogFlare helped achieve:
87% greener through a significant reduction in server requests and energy use
Lower hosting costs due to reduced server and bandwidth demand
88% faster user experience, with most visitors served cached pages from nearby locations
Across Umbraco projects, CogFlare has delivered up to a 90% reduction in server load, improving performance, sustainability, and resilience. It’s fully open source, actively maintained, and prepared for future Umbraco versions, including v17.
CogFlare, featured on Umbraco Marketplace in 2026
2. Azure Search
The quiet essential every brand needs for seamless UX and CX
We also build and maintain an Umbraco package that simplifies Azure Search integration.
This work evolved from repeated needs on enterprise platforms, where search implementations were often complex and inconsistent. Our package offers a straightforward, reusable approach that simplifies search implementation, maintenance, and scalability.
It’s used across Cogworks client platforms and shared openly so other Umbraco teams can benefit from a consistent, enterprise-ready solution as Umbraco and Azure continue to evolve.
Azure Cognitive Search In Action on Foster and Partners Intranet, built by Cogworks.
3. Supporting Umbraco events
We're always trying to sponsor key UK Umbraco events. Last year, that was Umbraco in the City and Umbraco Spark Bristol 2025.
Alongside sponsorship, our team actively gets involved in promotion, attending and sometimes speaking at Umbraco events. From nearly two decades of working with Umbraco, we know that these events help strengthen relationships and keep the ecosystem in top form.
Read about Imran's latest insights on a more sustainable, faster and cheaper infrastructure method, Azure Container Apps.
Imran speaking at Umbraco Spark on a Greener, Safer and Cheaper hosting infrastructure method, Azure Container Apps
4. Umbraco Sustainability Team
Cogworks also contributes through active involvement in the Umbraco Community Sustainability Team.
Imran Haider participates as a recognised contributor during paid working hours, sharing practical insights from real-world Umbraco platforms. His focus is on making sustainability achievable through performance optimisation, efficient hosting, and scalable infrastructure approaches.
This work aligns with Umbraco's values of performance, longevity, and responsible technology. The learning directly informs our client work and fosters sustainability thinking across our teams.
The Umbraco Community Sustainability Team 2025, from Umbraco.com
Good platforms are worth the squeeze ❤️
Our work with Umbraco goes well beyond delivery. From open-source packages and platform maintenance to community events and sustainability initiatives, everything we do is planned, funded, and integral to our everyday work.
It’s how we help keep the Umbraco ecosystem healthy, resilient, and ready for what’s next.
Good platforms deserve good care, and we’re very happy to roll up our sleeves. 🫡
Innerworks and Cogworks are proud to partner with Community TechAid who aim to enable sustainable access to technology and skills needed to ensure digital inclusion for all. Any support you can give is hugely appreciated.