Project context: bariatric surgery website
In 2014 I initially developed the presentation website of Dr. Cristian Boru, surgeon specializing in general surgery, with interest in minimally invasive, bariatric, digestive and hepatobiliary surgery, using Drupal 7 Framework.
After almost 10 years of flawless operation, we reached the situation where Drupal 7 reached End of Life in January 2025 - which meant a complete lack of security updates and major risks for the customer.
The chosen solution: complete rebuild and migration of content into a static site generated with Hugo - a modern, ultra-fast and extremely secure technology.
Old website vs New website
Objectives
- 100% migration without downtime or content loss from Drupal 7 to Hugo
- Significant improvement in user experience (modern UX/UI, intuitive navigation)
- Increased number of leads (contact forms, online appointments)
- Higher Google ranking and increased organic traffic
- Drastic reduction in annual hosting and maintenance costs (from ~600-800 €/year to under 100 €/year)
Why Hugo SSG ?
AI chose Hugo (I’ve been working intensively with this framework since 2018) because it offers:
- Loading speed under 1 second (Google PageSpeed 98-100/100)
- Maximum security - being static, there is no vulnerable database or PHP
- Ease of updating for the client (simple editing in Markdown or via Netlify CMS)
- Minimal hosting costs (Netlify / Vercel free or almost free)
- Excellent native SEO performance
| Metrics | Before (Drupal 7) | After migration (Hugo) | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home page load time | 4-6 seconds | < 1 second | +500 % |
| Google PageSpeed Mobile | 62-68 | 98-100 | +45 % |
| Monthly organic traffic | ~2,200 visits | +38 % in the first 3 months (continually growing) | +38 % + |
| Form leads | 18-22 / month | over 35 / month | +62 % |
| Hosting + maintenance costs | ~650 € / year | < 90 € / year | -86 % |
Conclusion
The migration to Hugo was not just a technical survival solution after the EOL of Drupal 7, but a true digital transformation: the site is now faster, more secure, better positioned in Google and generates significantly more client appointments.
A project that perfectly demonstrates my philosophy: technology should serve the business, not the other way around.
Do you also have an old Drupal 7 or WordPress site that is approaching EOL?
Let’s discuss your migration to Hugo or another modern static solution!
Indicative budget for a similar project: €1,200 - €2,000 (depending on the volume of content and additional functionalities)
