What needed to change
The lab had no standardized procedures, misplaced equipment, and an insufficient cooling system that put hardware at risk and drove up energy costs. Outdated technologies and disorganized workflows slowed development cycles and inflated operational overhead.
Asset management was nonexistent — over 500 pieces of equipment were untracked, underutilized, or improperly placed. Inadequate cooling created hot spots that threatened sensitive equipment and made energy consumption unpredictable.
How it was solved
Conducted a comprehensive assessment of the lab's layout, asset inventory, and energy utilization. Reorganized the physical space and equipment placement to optimize workflow, eliminate bottlenecks, and ensure every asset was properly accounted for and accessible.
Introduced standardized procedures across hardware development and QA teams to address procedural inconsistency. Upgraded systems and software to current standards and implemented equipment lifecycle management — from acquisition through decommissioning — so the lab could maintain its capabilities without accruing technical debt.
Rather than replacing the cooling infrastructure, worked with HVAC vendors to repair and optimize the existing system. Redesigned airflow configurations, eliminated hot spots, and refined energy management practices — achieving significant cost savings without capital expenditure on new equipment.
