How a Site Development Group Moved From Break/Fix to a Long-Term IT Partnership

Case Study: Architecture, Engineering & Construction

At A Glance

A central Indiana group of site development companies, spanning general contracting, engineering and consulting, real estate development and infrastructure services, relied on the team behind AIS for IT starting in 2008, before AIS was formally founded. It was AIS’s first client. Over more than 15 years the relationship grew from fixing a reactive support model into a long-term technology partnership that kept every company in the group running on one modern, managed platform.

• Industry: Architecture, engineering and construction
• Services: Managed Services, Cloud Services, Consulting
• Engagement length: More than 15 years

The Challenge

Before AIS, the group paid an hourly IT consultant who came on site about once a month. When something broke, staff waited for the consultant to arrive, and the network could be down for a full day before an issue was resolved. Charges piled up, and nobody was planning ahead. In site development, firms need to scale up and down with the project pipeline, and the group’s IT was being managed moment to moment with no view of where the business was headed.

Changing providers also felt risky. The consultant had worked with the staff for five years, and leadership was wary of disrupting a relationship everyone knew.

The Solution We Delivered

• Proactive managed services. AIS replaced break/fix with remote monitoring, planned and managed updates, remote access for staff and regular communication with leadership on the state of the network, so problems were caught before they caused downtime.
• Network modernization. AIS planned and installed a cloud-managed switching and wireless network, documenting the IP scheme, wireless networks and access point placement, then removed the old hardware and validated every wired and wireless connection with the client.
• Server upgrade. AIS installed new server hardware, built a new Windows Server 2019 domain controller, migrated directory, DNS and DHCP roles, reconfigured backups and retired the old host, leaving the group on hardware covered by warranty and support.
• SharePoint and OneDrive migration. AIS analyzed the existing file shares, cleaned up the folder and security structure, migrated files into SharePoint sites for each department drive, set up OneDrive for every user and trained staff on the new tools.
• Identity sync. When password sync between on-premises accounts and Microsoft 365 broke, AIS built a new directory sync server, migrated the configuration and restored single-password access to PCs, Office 365 apps and email.
• Voice and data convergence. AIS moved voice and data onto the same managed switches, retired the old voice switches, moved address assignment to the firewall so machines reconnect on their own after a power outage, and set up internet failover so remote users stay connected if the primary circuit drops.

Results & Impact

• A reactive, pay-by-the-hour model replaced with proactive managed services and a partner focused on the group’s growth.
• Infrastructure that scales with the business, from network and servers to cloud file storage, across every company in the group.
• Fewer recurring network issues: the network loops caused by separate voice and data networks were removed, and machines recover after power outages without a support call.
• Staff can reach their files from anywhere through SharePoint and OneDrive, and sign in everywhere with one password.

“What we had before was simply a consultant installing updates and performing break/fix. We wanted someone to look down the road to future growth.” Accounting Manager, Construction and Development Client

Ready to move from break/fix to a partner that plans ahead? Talk to AIS about a free consultation.