IT at HLZAE
July 14, 2022
With so many constant changes and updates to technology, architects and engineers face some of the biggest challenges among many industries today. Staying up to date with all of the transformations in hardware, software, and applications proves to be difficult when they’re constantly being created and finetuned.
At HLZAE, we always strive to be on the cutting edge of technology to ensure we are giving our clients the best possible service and most accurate solutions. Our goal is to consistently provide our clients an accurate analysis of building systems and structural conditions.
We rely on our IT department to ensure the control of our firm’s technological systems, maintenance of the infrastructure, and functionality of the systems overall. Beyond that, our IT team works internally on computer software and hardware in many ways that allow HLZAE to be successful.
What is the HLZAE IT Department responsible for?
- Support of over 100 users, 130 laptops, 60 tablets, 15 Printers
- Windows PC operating systems
- 1st Point of Contact for network issues/escalating IT issues
- Manage and troubleshoot MS Office and Email
- Set up and configuring PCs
- Office Desk Moves
- New Joiner Setup and Tech Onboarding
- Maintain all IT equipment, users and licensed software
- Purchase IT hardware/software
- AutoCAD License/Version management and deployment
- Remote Assistance and VPN Configuration
- User Education/Training
- Promote Best Practices for IT security and Data integrity
- Secure, Protect and Stabilize HLZA Tech Environment
- Build and Support bespoke applications
- Support off-the-shelf applications
Introducing Drone Inspections
Drones have been around for quite some time now, but with advances in technology, they can now be used to monitor project sites remotely. Our team has partnered with veteran drone pilots to perform close-up building façade inspections to give our clients an additional layer of visibility on their building.
Drone inspection photogrammetry allows for our team to capture images of the building safely and in a less intrusive way allowing our team to better understand the scale of necessary repairs. Through this, HLZAE can make an accurate assessment of the time and costs associated with the project. By using photogrammetry, we are able to perform detailed scoping, provide more precise pricing and ultimately, save you time and money.
Meet the Experts
Mark Edmunds, Director of Technology – 5 Years at HLZAE
Describe your role at HLZAE:
My over-arching goal is to ensure that everyone’s life is made just a little easier through the use of technology at the firm. Its important that the tech strategy aligns closely to the business’ needs and that the solutions match the problems.
What makes your role unique? No two days are the same so there is a uniqueness to every single day. The beauty of working for a small firm in technology is that you can make a meaningful impact. I enjoy the constant change and the constant opportunity to improve people’s lives. Getting people to adapt to technology makes things easier for them. I’ve also enjoyed being involved and managing drone/virtual inspections… it’s a nice combo of business and technology.
Kwayne James, Senior Cloud Infrastructure Engineer – 4 years at HLZAE
Describe your role at HLZAE: I partner with the Technology Director to help establish an IT roadmap for technology infrastructure and Ensures the HLZAE infrastructure and services are secure, scalable, and compliant. Also, I manage and work with external vendors to ensure the smooth operations and maintenance of the company’s IT infrastructure, disaster recovery and resiliency plans.
What makes your role unique? I played both roles as a driver (Cloud engineer) and Navigator (Cloud Architect. As the Cloud Engineer, I focus on implementation of Realtime tasks whereas as a Cloud Architect, I focus on planning and designing for success.
Cesar Herrera, IT Specialist – 5 years at HLZAE
Describe your role at HLZAE: This position involves managing the process, life cycle and creation of software aimed at helping users solve business problems. This scope includes working with different teams to gather business requirements, analyze multiple solutions and provide recommendations, design, and develop the solution chosen, implement the system, develop the documentation, and deploy the system into the production environment.
What makes your role unique? One unique aspect of the role is I get to speak with everyone in the organization. I meet all the new hires on day one and have been at HLZAE long enough to meet those that started before me. I have previous experience working on a trading floor, so I am very familiar with user’s “I want this done yesterday” requests and technology code reds. This forced me to adapt to situations quickly. Using this experience has helped with the unique aspect is applying technical solutions to improve nontechnical problems. Providing and connecting datasets across the organization to improve automations, provide insight, and reduce data entry. Bringing in multiple technologies to get a solution done as quickly and cost effective as possible.
At HLZAE, we aim to be your trusted advisors for long-lasting relationships built on a commitment to service, safety, top-quality work, and unmatched problem-solving skills. Our passion drives us to construct a legacy as the leading architectural and engineering firm in New York City.
We are a closely-knit team of industry-leading architects, engineers, and specialists who are ready to take on any challenge that this city can throw at us. Our extensive knowledge and expertise has made HLZAE highly sought after for consulting on new construction. We will continue to set the bar higher with our industry-leading expertise and will change, adapt and innovate to do whatever needs to be done in the world’s most demanding city.
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