The Asian Sailing Federation (ASAF) is the governing body for the sport of sailing in Asia. It works with the national sailing federations of the region. Its website covers membership, news, events, technical material, media and sailing at the Asian Games.
Raghwendra Web Services (RWS) has built and looked after ASAF's website since 2009. It is a custom WordPress site, and RWS also looks after the domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups and security around it. Established in 2005, RWS has delivered 650+ projects for clients in 20+ countries.
The brief
ASAF needed an official website to represent a federation whose members are spread across Asia. The first version was a general corporate site that presented the federation. It was built on WordPress, a content management system (CMS), the tool editors use to publish pages and posts without changing code.
RWS also took on the technical side: the domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups and security. That gave ASAF one contact for anything that affected the site.
One site, built in 2009 and kept current
The site began in 2009 and has run on WordPress since. Each phase below added to the same site.
2009: the first corporate site
Communication with ASAF began in November 2008, and development started in 2009. RWS built the first version as a general corporate site for the federation, through WordPress website development. It was delivered within the timeline agreed with the client.
Later: a responsive layout
Responsive design was not yet a concept when the site was first built, so the first version did not have one. RWS developed a responsive layout later.
A responsive layout is one set of pages that rearranges itself to the width of the screen, not a separate mobile site. ASAF therefore has one site to update.
Since then: updates, content and features
RWS updates WordPress core, the plugins and the theme on a regular basis. It helps ASAF with content updates and has added features to the site over the years. The same team that built the site looks after it, so a new page or feature goes onto a structure RWS already knows.
From first conversation to go-live
The build followed these stages:
- Requirements. RWS discussed with ASAF what the site had to do and which pages it needed.
- Design and approval. RWS prepared the design and ASAF reviewed it. Development began after the design was approved.
- Development. RWS built the site on WordPress, with a theme customised for the federation.
- Testing and debugging. RWS tested the pages, fixed the faults it found and tested again.
- Go-live. The site went live within the timeline agreed with the client.
How the content is organised
The main menu gives each area its own section: About Us, Membership, News, Events, Sailing at Asian Games, Technical and Media.
The site holds 559 published posts and 72 published pages. Posts carry news and updates, and pages carry fixed information. The About Us page sets out the federation's aims and objectives and the organisations it is affiliated to.
More than a website: domain, hosting, SSL, backups and security
RWS treats a website as a service, not only a build. For ASAF that has meant one supplier for the parts an organisation would otherwise manage separately, with WordPress maintenance and support that continues today.
- Domain. The domain is the site's web address. RWS manages it.
- Hosting. RWS manages the hosting account the site runs on.
- SSL certificate. An SSL certificate encrypts the connection between a visitor's browser and the site, and puts the padlock and "https" in the address bar. RWS keeps it valid.
- Backups. RWS keeps backups of the site.
- Security. RWS handles website security as part of maintenance.
- WordPress updates. RWS updates WordPress core, plugins and the theme on a regular basis.
Updates matter because outdated plugins and themes are a common way WordPress sites are attacked. RWS applies them on a regular basis, so ASAF does not have to track them.
Decisions and trade-offs
Three choices shaped the work, and each had a cost.
A site customised for the federation. ASAF's site was built as a custom WordPress site to represent a federation across Asia. The cost is care at update time, because custom code has to keep working when WordPress core and plugins change.
A responsive layout added later. The first version came before responsive design, so RWS added the layout afterwards. The cost is that retrofitting a layout takes more work than designing for small screens from the start.
One supplier for the site and its technical surroundings. ASAF has one contact for the build, domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups and security. The cost is dependence on a single supplier, so RWS has to keep access details and procedures documented and up to date.
The result
- ASAF has had one official website since 2009, with a responsive layout added later.
- The site works on phones and tablets as well as desktop screens.
- It holds 559 published posts and 72 published pages, under a main menu of seven sections.
- RWS handles the domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups, security, and WordPress core, plugin and theme updates.
- RWS helps with content updates on a regular basis and has added features over the years.
In a LinkedIn recommendation in July 2026, a client of RWS wrote:
We have been working with Raghwendra and his team at Raghwendra Web Services for over 17+ years.
Our partnership began when we needed an official website for the Asian Sailing Federation. They developed a fully custom WordPress website that was thoughtfully designed, technically robust and well suited to represent a pan-Asian sports federation.
From the beginning, they understood that reliability, security and performance were essential.
What has truly distinguished Raghwendra Web Services, is that they have proactively managed our domain, hosting, SSL certificates, website security, content updates, feature enhancements, and ongoing WordPress core, plugin, and theme updates.
Throughout these 17+ years, we have never had to worry about website downtime, security issues, or technical maintenance.
They consistently take ownership and are very professional to work with.
If you are looking for a WordPress development partner who delivers not only an excellent website but also dependable long-term support, I highly recommend Raghwendra and the team at Raghwendra Web Services.
Preeti Menon, LinkedIn recommendation, 1 July 2026
Talk to us about your sports federation website
If your federation or association needs a WordPress website built around how it works, we would like to hear from you. We can also look after the domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups and security. Tell us what the site has to do and we will tell you how we would build and look after it. Visit our contact page.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
How long has RWS looked after the ASAF website?
Since 2009. RWS built the first version as a general corporate site for the federation and has looked after it since.
What does RWS manage for ASAF?
RWS manages the domain, hosting, SSL certificate, backups and security, and updates WordPress core, plugins and the theme on a regular basis. It also helps with content updates.
Was the ASAF website responsive from the start?
No. Responsive design was not yet a concept when the site was first built. RWS developed a responsive layout later, so the same pages adjust to phones and tablets.
Is the ASAF website a custom WordPress build?
Yes. RWS built it as a custom WordPress site, with a theme customised for the federation.
How big is the ASAF website?
It holds 559 published posts and 72 published pages. The main menu has seven sections: About Us, Membership, News, Events, Sailing at Asian Games, Technical and Media.
How does RWS take a website from first conversation to go-live?
RWS discusses the requirements with the client, prepares a design for approval, develops the site, tests and debugs it, and then takes it live.
Why does a WordPress site need regular updates?
Outdated plugins and themes are a common way WordPress sites are attacked. For ASAF, RWS applies WordPress core, plugin and theme updates on a regular basis.
