Case Study
Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island
The Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island (ERSRI) provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to state employees, public school teachers, judges, state police, and participating municipal employees. eWay built the editor-driven Drupal site, two custom Drupal modules (an events calendar and a webform engine) that did not exist as pre-built options, and continues to operate the platform end to end through ongoing managed operations and major Drupal version upgrades.
- Industry
- Government
- Platform
- Drupal
- Services
- Drupal Development + Custom Modules + Managed Operations
- Engagement
- Ongoing managed operations across multiple Drupal generations
Client Snapshot
About Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island
- Scale
- Statewide pension agency serving Rhode Island state, municipal, school, and public-safety employees
- Website
- www.ersri.org
The Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island (ERSRI) provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to a broad cross-section of Rhode Island public employees: state employees, public school teachers, judges, state police, participating municipal police and fire employees, and general employees of participating municipalities.
The agency's public website is the primary information channel for active members and retirees navigating their benefits, plan details, events, and member services. Its content evolves as benefit policy, plan rules, and member services change, so the site needs to be operated by the agency's communications team rather than depending on a developer for routine changes.
The Challenge
A pension agency website that editors actually own, on a platform that stays current.
ERSRI serves a diverse member base across Rhode Island state and municipal government. The website is the primary information channel for active members and retirees navigating retirement, disability, and survivor benefits, plan rules, events, and member services.
ERSRI wanted a fully editor-driven website where the content team could update every section through Drupal's admin without depending on a developer for each change. They had a specific design in mind that did not match any off-the-shelf Drupal theme, and they needed two pieces of functionality (an events calendar and a webform engine) that did not have suitable pre-built Drupal modules at the time.
Beyond the initial build, the agency needed an operator who would keep the platform current as Drupal evolves. Drupal releases new major versions on a multi-year cadence, and each generation deprecates APIs and patterns from the previous one. An agency-grade Drupal platform requires deliberate ongoing operations, not a deliver-and-walk-away project.
What ERSRI needed
Fully editor-driven website with content managed through the Drupal admin
Custom Drupal theme matching the agency's specific visual design
Custom events calendar module purpose-built for the agency's workflow
Custom webform module supporting the agency's submission requirements
An operator who would keep the platform current through major Drupal version upgrades
A coherent admin experience so editors manage every section without developer support
The Solution
Initial build, custom modules, and ongoing operations across Drupal generations.
eWay built the ERSRI website as a Drupal site with a custom responsive theme matching the agency's visual design and two custom modules, ERSRI Calendar and ERSRI Web Form, that fill the gaps where pre-built Drupal options did not exist. The engagement has continued as managed operations through major Drupal version upgrades, including deprecated-API remediation and refactoring of the custom code to remain compatible with current Drupal patterns.
Custom responsive Drupal theme matching ERSRI's specific visual design
ERSRI Calendar: a custom Drupal module for events that was not available as a pre-built option
ERSRI Web Form: a custom Drupal module for webforms purpose- built for the agency's submission requirements
Custom Blocks and Views in the Drupal admin so editors manage every section through the standard editorial workflow
Editor-friendly content management with every section of the site updateable through the Drupal admin without developer involvement
Mobile-responsive design across the public-facing site
Major Drupal version upgrade with a comprehensive audit of deprecated core APIs, contributed module dependencies, and custom code patterns introduced in earlier Drupal generations
Refactoring of custom theme and custom module code to replace deprecated functionality with current Drupal-compatible approaches, ensuring stability and future readiness
Ongoing managed operations including security patches, contributed-module updates, and continuous compatibility work as Drupal evolves
Architecture
A glimpse of the stack
CMS
Drupal with custom responsive theme, kept current across major version generations
Custom Modules
ERSRI Calendar and ERSRI Web Form
Frontend
HTML, CSS, jQuery
Backend
Custom PHP and YAML configuration
The Outcome
An editor-driven pension agency platform that fits the agency and stays current.
Editorial independence
The ERSRI communications team updates every section of the website through Drupal's admin. Content changes do not require developer involvement, which keeps the site current as benefit information, plan rules, events, and member services evolve.
Visual identity preserved
The custom Drupal theme honors ERSRI's specific design language across the site rather than forcing the agency to fit into an off-the-shelf theme.
Calendar and webforms that fit the agency
Where pre-built Drupal modules did not exist for ERSRI's events and webform needs, custom modules were built specifically for the agency's workflows. The result fits how the team actually works rather than how a generic module thinks they should.
Kept current as Drupal evolves
The platform has been carried through major Drupal version upgrades by eWay, including deprecated-API audits and refactoring of the custom code. The agency does not face the discontinuity that comes from a build that ages out of support.
ERSRI's website is now an editor-driven Drupal platform built specifically for the agency's needs and operated by eWay through the multi-year arc of an agency platform's life. The custom theme, the ERSRI Calendar module, and the ERSRI Web Form module were all built to honor the agency's design and workflow, and have been kept current through major Drupal generations rather than left to age into incompatibility.
Common questions about this engagement
What buyers ask before engaging us on a project like Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island
Why build custom modules instead of using pre-built Drupal options?
When the project began, suitable pre-built Drupal modules for ERSRI's events calendar and webform requirements did not exist. Building custom let the agency get exactly the workflow and field structure they needed rather than bending their requirements to fit a generic module. The trade-off is more upfront effort in exchange for a tighter fit and fewer integration seams over the lifetime of the platform.
What does 'fully editor-driven' mean in practice?
Every section of the website is updateable from the Drupal admin by the agency's content team. Custom Blocks and Views are configured so editors can add events, update member information, change plan content, and publish news without involving a developer. The site stays current with how ERSRI actually communicates rather than waiting for a release cycle.
How is the platform kept current as Drupal evolves?
Drupal releases new major versions on a multi-year cadence, and each generation deprecates APIs and patterns from the previous one. eWay's ongoing operations cover the audit and refactoring work needed to carry the platform through those transitions: identifying deprecated core APIs, contributed-module dependencies, and custom code patterns; refactoring to current Drupal-compatible approaches; verifying behavior across the custom theme, the ERSRI Calendar module, and the ERSRI Web Form module. The agency does not have to plan a separate replatform every few years.
What is in the ERSRI Calendar module?
The ERSRI Calendar is a custom Drupal module purpose-built for the agency's events workflow. It handles event entry, display, and the specific metadata the agency tracks for member-facing events. The module integrates cleanly with Drupal's editorial workflow so events are managed alongside other site content rather than in a separate tool.
Did the agency need to change how they manage content?
No. The Drupal admin and the custom Blocks and Views were configured around how ERSRI's communications team already works. The custom modules slot into the same authoring experience. The agency uses Drupal as its content management platform without needing a separate tool for events or webforms.
What does eWay actually own day-to-day?
eWay owns the custom theme, the two custom Drupal modules, the ongoing security patching and contributed-module updates, and the major-version upgrade work that keeps the platform aligned with current Drupal generations. New functionality and platform refinements are scoped through eWay rather than handed off to a separate vendor. The agency's communications team owns the content; eWay owns the platform underneath.
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