I knew we had a problem before I’d even handed back my visitor badge. It was a big project: complex, interesting, exactly the kind of work we wanted to be doing. We walked the site, smiling and nodding, while I did the math in my head. But as we walked out, I turned to one of my team and said: “We’re the right team for this. But it’s not going to work. We need another four or five really good people. Immediately.”
As anyone in building automation knows, that’s easier said than done. Good engineers are hard to find. Experienced engineers who understand building automation systems (BAS), HVAC controls, customers, and the realities of delivering a large project are harder still. Our first instinct was the obvious one: we need more people. But the more we looked at the work ahead of us, the more we started to wonder whether that was the only question we should be asking.
Did every part of this project really need one of our most experienced engineers? That question has changed quite a lot about the way we think about engineering capacity at Triton Concepts.
Which building automation tasks require experienced engineers?
There are parts of a building automation project where engineering experience really matters, such as:
- Understanding what the customer is trying to achieve
- Working through a difficult integration
- Making a call when something in the field doesn’t match the drawings
- Solving the problem nobody expected
However, other parts of the work follow patterns we already know. These pieces are more predictable and consistent, including:
- Drawings
- Graphics
- Standard engineering tasks
- Certain programming elements
They need to be done properly, but they don’t necessarily need to be rebuilt from scratch by one of your most experienced people every time. So, we started thinking less about simply adding headcount and more about getting the right balance of people around the work.
What can AI teach us about matching expertise to the task?
People working with AI are quickly learning that you don’t need the most powerful model for every task. For routine work, a lighter model may be more than capable. For the harder problems, you use the deeper reasoning and capability where it actually makes a difference.
We think about the mix of people on a project in much the same way. The goal isn’t to put the most expensive resource on every task; it’s to get the right level of expertise onto the right work. That doesn’t lower the standard; rather, it puts deeper capability where it can change the outcome.
For the customer, that means getting more value from the engineering team they’re already paying for.
Expanding engineering capacity
One way we’ve expanded our engineering capacity is through Schneider Electric’s Global Engineering Center (GEC). We use the GEC as an extension of the Triton team for engineering, programming, and graphics. The added capacity is useful. But for us, the bigger benefit is that the work can be done against a common set of standards.
We saw that firsthand on a large modernization program for a life sciences customer involving Triton, another Schneider Electric partner, and the local branch. Each team was capable, but the work began to diverge: drawings varied, graphics looked different, and software conversions were handled differently.
Bringing Schneider Electric’s Global Engineering Center into the project gave everyone a common engineering foundation. It let us scale the repeatable parts of the work while keeping our experienced engineers close to the customer and the decisions that genuinely needed them.
The customer got consistent work without losing access to experienced judgment. That was the real lesson for us.
What should building automation teams standardize, and what should they leave to experienced engineers?
None of this means engineering should become a production line—quite the opposite. Building automation projects will always contain things you can’t predict, such as:
- Conditions differing from the drawings
- An integration that doesn’t behave as expected
- A customer who changes direction
- Something simply goes wrong
Those are the moments where experience earns its keep. So, the idea isn’t to standardize everything. It’s to standardize what we already understand so we have more time and attention for what we don’t.
And it doesn’t mean we’ve stopped hiring. We still need to recruit and develop great building automation engineers. It simply frees up the engineers for tasks that require their expertise.
Standardize the known. Protect people for the unknown.
For us at Triton, part of the answer has been to use Schneider Electric’s Global Engineering Center in order to:
- Add scalable engineering capacity
- Work to common standards
- Keep our own people closer to the parts of a project where their judgment matters most
It won’t be the right answer for every project. Keep hiring. But before you assume the answer is another four or five engineers, we think there’s another question worth asking: Are your best people doing the work that truly needs them?
Ready to see how you can help your team do more with the talent you already have? Learn more here.
About the author
Tony Nolan, President, Triton Concepts
Tony Nolan serves as the President of Triton Concepts. He founded the company, alongside his partners, with a focus on delivering quality solutions in critical environments. Under Tony’s leadership, Triton Concepts has experienced sharp growth and developed a long list of satisfied clinets, which has fueled his knack for identifying and developing top talent. Day-to-day, Tony is active in driving growth, developing long-term strategy, and managing key client relationships.
Prior to Triton Concepts, Tony gained more than a decade of experience in both sales and general management roles, working for some of the automation industry’s leading manufacturers. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Manchester.
Outisde the office, Tony likes spending time with his family and is an avid Manchester United fan. He enjoys the beach, breweries, and everything else that Southern California has to offer.
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