Yes! In fact we encode the PHP we write for this very reason. Sometimes this is misunderstood as a way to block programmers from accessing our code. We separate PHP from the HTML for two reasons:
  1. It allows you to use any web design, many of our scripts have a completely unique design that are indistinguishable from the original.
  2. By encoding our script new features and bug fixes do not overwrite the code your programmer creates. If he was allowed to modify the PHP directly then each update would mean he would have to rewrite his code.